Alaska and Delta are battling for the Seattle market. (Image: Jim Glab)
Although Alaska Airlines and Delta are engaged in a battle for passengers and market share at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, they still remain partners on one level. But that partnership seems to be getting increasingly frayed as Delta adds more routes at Alaska’s SEA hub.
In the latest development, members of Alaska’s Board Room airport lounge program will no longer have access to Delta Sky Clubs after the first of the year, according to information on Alaska’s website. (When we looked at Delta’s website, it still showed Alaska Board Room locations as being available to Sky Club members with no cutoff date. But we have to believe this change is reciprocal. Maybe Delta just hasn’t had time to update its website yet.)
Alaska’s members may not need Delta’s lounges any more anyway; in August, Alaska started a reciprocal lounge-use relationship with American’s Admirals Clubs, and it just announced an expansion of its partnership with United, giving Alaska Board Room members access to United Clubs in Philadelphia and Minneapolis-St. Paul as well as Phoenix effective December 1.
Delta is busy constructing one of the largest Sky Clubs in its network in the main terminal at SeaTac, which is expected to open next year. But Board Room members won’t get reciprocal access to it.
Speaking of Alaska Airlines Board Rooms, the carrier announced it will open a new one November 7 in Sea-Tac’s North Satellite terminal. It will offer work stations, free Wi-Fi, and big-screen TVs, along with free snacks, beverages and cocktails. On the same date, it will offer expanded hours at Board Rooms in the Seattle, Los Angeles, Portland and Anchorage airports.
Related: Alaska Air now using stunning Cathay Pacific lounge at SFO
Alaska and Delta do still maintain a frequent flyer program partnership — for now, at least.
On the route competition front, Delta just announced it will begin four daily flights between Seattle and Orange County, California on May 1 — a market currently dominated by Alaska and Southwest. Delta noted that with this latest addition, it plans to add new service to 10 destinations from SEA between November 2015 and May 2016. The other markets, previously announced, include Billings, Boston, Cancun, Edmonton, Kona, Missoula, Orlando, Pasco (Wash.) and Victoria, B.C.
Alaska keeps growing at SEA as well. It just started new service to Raleigh-Durham, N.C. this month; last month, it added new flights to Nashville and New York JFK.
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This Alaska-Delta fight is getting old. Neither carrier is going to pick up all of the other’s portfolio.
Alaska isn’t going to buy bigger planes to fly to Asia. Delta’s shareholders aren’t going to allow the airline take over routes to the Land of the Midnight Sun.
And nobody is California is going to travel longer to connect to flights heading back East or across the Pacific no matter who’s plane it is…. They have no shortage of option that don’t require that sort of detour…
I’m guessing they are moving into the old United RCC space?