Airlines threaten to move flights from Atlanta

ATLANTA — Airlines that do business at the world's busiest airport are playing hardball in talks over new lease agreements, threatening to move some flights to other airports if they can't maintain competitive costs on fees they pay.

The master lease agreements that apply to airlines at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport do not expire until September 2010, but talks between the sides have already heated up.

Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc., the world's biggest carrier, and discount carrier AirTran Airways, a unit of Orlando, Fla.-based AirTran Holdings Inc., say that if their costs are too high they may be forced to move some connecting flights to other airports.

Neither Delta nor AirTran is considering pulling out of Atlanta altogether.

The two carriers represent roughly 93 percent of the traffic at Hartsfield-Jackson. The other 7 percent of traffic there is split between other carriers including AMR Corp.'s American Airlines, US Airways Group Inc., Continental Airlines Inc., UAL Corp.'s United Airlines and several foreign carriers.

Airport General Manager Ben DeCosta did not return calls to his home and cell phone Monday seeking comment. An airport spokesman declined to comment.

According to the airport, all the airlines that do business at the facility are expected to generate about $160 million in airport revenue in 2009, including property leases and landing fees.

Intertwined with the talks over new lease agreements is consternation over the status of the airport's $1.6 billion international terminal project, which is in jeopardy of being halted because of the airport's inability to secure $600 million in municipal bond financing.

On Nov. 13, DeCosta told The Associated Press that tight credit markets were to blame for the airport's inability to get the bond financing.

However, according to documents obtained Monday by AP, John Boatright, Delta's vice president of corporate real estate, sent a Sept. 10 letter to prospective underwriters of the airport's bond financing stating that Delta opposed the airport's capital improvement program, which includes the terminal project.

Delta's stance could factor into the underwriters' decision because the airline is the majority tenant of Hartsfield-Jackson.

The airport, which has a good credit rating, believes that because of tight credit markets it would not have been able to go to market for the bonds regardless of Delta's position.