What’s Really Going on With Delta Air Lines?

Delta Air Lines announced recently that it was suspending its financial guidance because consumers are pulling back on travel given the tariff discussions and uncertainty in the market. A few weeks before that, Delta lowered guidance because it said travelers were pulling back on travel. 

Is the weaking of Delta Air Line’s financial picture all about macro-economic conditions or is Delta masking other problems? 

Let’s turn to Magid’s Brand EmotionalDNA data for some answers. 

Magid data shows that purchase intent for the major airlines has, indeed, been trending down. From Q3 ’24 to Q4 ’24, purchase intent fell for Delta Air Lines (-6%), United (-5%) and JetBlue (-5%). 

But this doesn’t tell the whole story. 

Delta’s position in the market has worsened considerably more than United’s or JetBlue’s. BrandEDNA shows that in the second half of ’24, recommendation intent among customers fell by 10% for Delta vs only 3% for United and 6% for JetBlue. Similar patterns exist for brand love and perceived market leadership. 

Even more concerning for Delta are the brand attributes that drive brand KPI performance. In the second half of ’24, consumers said Delta became a far less uplifting, joyful and imaginative brand – all three are important drivers of brand loyalty and brand love in the airline industry. JetBlue, on the other hand, was seen to be far more uplifting, imaginative and creative. JetBlue is also seen as delivering greater value and being much more affordable than Delta Air Lines – important positioning when most consumers are feeling pinched financially. 

Perhaps most telling, however, are the overall brand profiles of the various airlines based on how consumers feel about them. That picture is fairly stark for Delta Air Lines versus its competitors. 

The bottom line here is that Delta Air Lines has become a rather antiseptic brand, offering superior reliability, but lacking in personal engagement which is having a materially negative impact on brand KPIs and likely impacting future bookings. 

Delta’s lowered guidance isn’t all about tariff concerns or weak consumer sentiment. It’s also being driven by a weaking brand.