Dallas airport and carrier reach deal on abandoned gates

GRAPEVINE, Texas — Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport will pay Delta Air Lines Inc. $7 million for 24 gates that the troubled carrier is abandoning and will offer other airlines a year's free rent and up to $22 million in aid to take Delta's place.

Delta will keep four gates at DFW. Delta had leased the gates through the end of 2009, but instead of forcing Delta to make good on the future rent payments, the airport said Thursday it would reimburse Delta for costs of physical improvements it made at Terminal E.

"We know Delta has had some very tough decisions to make here at our airport and around the country, and we believe our agreement with the airline is beneficial to both parties," airport chief executive officer Jeff Fegan said in a statement.

Delta has operated at DFW since the airport opened in 1974. DFW was a Delta hub, but the Atlanta-based carrier is cutting its daily flights there from about 250 to 21 by the end of the month. American Airlines is the dominant carrier at DFW.

"Although DFW will no longer be a Delta hub, we will continue to have a significant presence in the market, one of the country's largest, with frequent service to our hubs in Atlanta, Cincinnati and Salt Lake City," said Wallis D. Shoppy, Delta's managing director of corporate real estate.

The airport hasn't found a new tenant for Delta's gates.

Delta officials said Wednesday that plans are proceeding to increase traffic through Salt Lake City International Airport as the airline's Dallas emphasis declines. The airline announced in September that it would add 58 flights out of Salt Lake City as part of its restructuring, including 13 added nonstop destinations.

DFW airport officials have complained that Southwest Airlines Inc., which uses nearby Love Field, has interfered with their plans to replace Delta by announcing it will lobby to overturn a federal ban on long-haul flights from the smaller Dallas airport.

DFW officials have said the move by Southwest, the largest low-cost carrier, would scare other low-cost airlines away from launching service at DFW.

On Thursday, the DFW board unanimously approved the offer of one year's free rent and $12.2 million to $22.2 million in other aid to any major U.S. carrier that would lease 10 to 22 gates in Terminal E through 2009 and meet flight goals. The airport said aid would include improvements at the terminal and help with marketing costs.

Airport board chairman Max Wells called the offer "a bold initiative that signals the airport will continue to compete aggressively to bring more choices to our customers."

Delta expects to eliminate about 3,600 local jobs when its pullback at DFW is complete, and many of the remaining 1,000 pilots and flight attendants are expected to move.

In December, economists hired by the airport said Delta's pullback would cost the local economy about $780 million a year. Southwest officials said the numbers were exaggerated.