ATLANTA and SAO PAULO, April 13, 2010 – Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) and GOL (NYSE: GOL and BM&FBOVESPA: GOLL4) today announced they filed documentation with the governments of the United States and Brazil requesting authorization to implement a codeshare agreement. The agreement will allow Delta and GOL customers improved connecting flight access beyond the carriers’ respective hubs, including Atlanta, New York-JFK, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.
The codeshare arrangement will initially allow Delta to put its code on more than 45 GOL flights departing from Brasilia, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo to other cities throughout Brazil, as well as GOL flights between Brazil and Paraguay and Uruguay*.
The airlines also plan to offer members of Delta’s SkyMiles and GOL’s SMILES frequent flier programs the ability to earn and redeem miles on all flights operated by each carrier. Redemption benefits are scheduled to begin this fall. The frequent flier program cooperation is not dependent on the codeshare relationship.
“Delta’s continued growth in Brazil will be further enhanced by our new alliance partner GOL and its extensive network throughout Brazil and the rest of South America,” said Christophe Didier, Delta’s Staff Vice President of Sales and Affairs for Latin America and the Caribbean. “This alliance relationship will benefit our customers as it will provide the advantage of traveling to more destinations on one ticket with enhanced connecting service between our airlines, and earning SkyMiles and SMILES credits for the entire trip.”
“We are very pleased to join efforts with a global carrier like Delta, as our SMILES program members will be able to earn and redeem miles on worldwide flights. The agreement will also increase passenger traffic and load factors on GOL”, added Claudia Pagnano, GOL’s Executive Vice-President – Market.
Delta currently offers 30 nonstop weekly flights between the United States and Brazil. This includes service between Atlanta and Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasilia, Fortaleza, and Manaus; and service between New York-JFK and Sao Paulo.
Delta announced last week it also is seeking government authorization to start service between Sao Paulo and Detroit. [See related news item online at http://news.delta.com/index.php?s=43&item=991]
About Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines serves more than 160 million customers each year. With its unsurpassed global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 367 destinations in 66 countries on six continents. Delta employs more than 70,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of nearly 800 aircraft. A founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance, Delta participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France KLM. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 16,000 daily flights, with hubs in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York-JFK, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City and Tokyo-Narita. The airline's service includes the SkyMiles frequent flier program, the world's largest airline loyalty program; the award-winning BusinessElite service; and more than 50 Delta Sky Clubs in airports worldwide. Customers can check in for flights, print boarding passes, check bags and review flight status at delta.com.
About GOL
GOL Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes S.A. (NYSE: GOL and Bovespa: GOLL4), the largest low-cost and low-fare airline in Latin America, offers over 860 daily flights to 50 destinations that connect all the important cities in Brazil and ten major destinations in South America and the Caribbean. The Company operates a young, modern fleet of Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft, the safest and most comfortable of its class, with high aircraft utilization and efficiency levels. Fully committed to seeking innovative solutions through the use of cutting-edge technology, the Company ― with its GOL, VARIG, Gollog, SMILES and Voe Fácil brands — offers its customers easy payment facilities, a wide range of complementary services and the best cost-benefit ratio in the market.
* Subject to government approvals.
