Summary
- College football season is a big deal in the US, with Delta Air Lines adding over 50 flights and 5,600 seats for upcoming games.
- Delta’s network changes focus on big matchups like Alabama, Ohio State, and LSU, offering flights to transport fans to games.
- Last season’s national champion Michigan and ESPN’s top-ranked Georgia are notably absent from the list of added flights.
Delta Air Lines is already gearing up for college football season, adding more than 50 flights and 5,600 seats to its network between the end of August and the beginning of December.
Gearing up for 2024-2025
College (university) sports are a big deal in the United States (US), with teams in two of the biggest conferences raking in an average of $35 million in revenue annually. Airlines capitalize on this, expanding their networks once schedules are released to transport fans to games. According to a report from The Points Guy, Delta Air Lines has just made its network changes for the upcoming season.
The Atlanta-based airline has added more than 50 flights and 5,600 seats to its network between August 31 and December 1, near the end of the regular season. Delta’s schedule changes center around some of the season’s biggest matchups, featuring schools like Alabama, Ohio State, LSU, and more. The complete list of the new flights is below:
- Sept. 1: LSU versus USC in Las Vegas — Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to Las Vegas
- Sept. 14: Alabama at Wisconsin — Birmingham to Madison, Wisconsin
- Sept. 21: Tennessee at Oklahoma — Knoxville, Tennessee, to Oklahoma City
- Oct. 5: Tennessee at Arkansas — Knoxville to Northwest Arkansas
- Oct. 12: Ohio State at Oregon — Columbus, Ohio, to Portland, Oregon, and Minneapolis to Eugene, Oregon
- Oct. 19: South Carolina at Oklahoma — Columbia, South Carolina, to Oklahoma City
- Oct. 26: Missouri at Alabama — Kansas City to Birmingham
- Nov. 2: UNC at FSU — Raleigh-Durham to Tallahassee
- Nov. 9: Florida at Texas — Gainesville, Florida, to Austin; Tampa to Austin; and Orlando to Austin
- Nov. 9: Washington at Penn State — Seattle to Pittsburgh
- Nov. 9: Iowa at UCLA — Des Moines to Los Angeles
- Nov. 9: FSU at Notre Dame — Tallahassee to South Bend
- Nov. 16: Texas at Arkansas — Austin to Northwest Arkansas
- Nov. 23: Kentucky at Texas — Lexington, Kentucky, to Austin
- Nov. 23: Alabama at Oklahoma — Birmingham to Oklahoma City and Huntsville, Alabama, to Oklahoma City
- Nov. 30: Oklahoma at LSU — Oklahoma City to Baton Rouge
Those who follow college football will notice an interesting omission from this list. None of the flights Delta added thus far are for games involving Michigan, the national champion last season. This is especially peculiar as the University of Michigan is located less than 30 miles from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), a Delta hub.
Although the season will not start for several months, another interesting omission is Georgia, who won the title for the 2022-2023 season. Georgia is also the number one ranked university in ESPN’s latest preseason rankings, though those are sure to change in the coming months. According to Delta, the flights that have already been added meet high demand from customers ready to cheer on their teams.
Most games on this list are on Saturdays, so Delta will operate the outbound on Fridays and the return legs on Sundays.
This is not the first time Delta has added flights for college football. In January, Simple Flying reported that the airline had added several seats for the national championship game. As mentioned above, Michigan was the champion, and because Delta operates a hub in Detroit, it was perfectly set up to increase its offering.
In addition to increasing flights to Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Delta added a few flights to William P. Hobby Airport (HOU). Because the additions were made just days before the championship match, prices at the time were very high, with roundtrip fares reaching nearly $2,500 depending on the day of travel. Michigan’s opponent in the game was the Washington Huskies, and Delta added flights from its hub at Seattle Tacoma International Airport to Houston.
United Airlines went big in 2023
Last year, in a campaign with USC quarterback Caleb Williams, United Airlines added 127 flights for the football season. In 2023, more than 15 destinations saw either one-off or new service from United. Because of high demand, the airline even deployed larger aircraft to ensure that fans would be able to see their teams play.
Related
United Airlines Will Operate 127 College Football Flights This Season