Delta Air Lines announced today that it is restarting service to Hong Kong International Airport (HKG). Delta previously served Hong Kong from its hub at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) but cut the route back in 2018.
Delta Will Fly Between Hong Kong and Los Angeles
While this comes as a bit of a surprise, given the fact that Delta has built up Seattle as its Asian gateway, the new Hong Kong service will operate from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Paul Baldoni, Senior Vice President of Network Planning at Delta, said this about the new route:
“Launching service to Hong Kong and Chicago from LAX strengthens our presence in two of the world’s most dynamic markets. As the largest global carrier at LAX, we’re continuing to invest in routes that matter to our customers and deliver the premium travel experience that they’ve come to expect from Delta.”
Delta will use its flagship Airbus A350-900 on the 7,260 mile route which are outfitted with 40 Delta One Business Class Suites, 40 Premium Economy seats, 36 Comfort+ extra legroom Economy seats, and 159 Economy seats. The route is scheduled to launch June 6, 2026 with daily service.
Why Los Angeles?
As I mentioned above, Los Angeles is an interesting choice as the departure flight for the airline’s Hong Kong flight. The route is already well served by United Airlines (2x daily flights) and Cathay Pacific (3x daily flights). These airlines are part of Star Alliance and OneWorld alliances, respectively.
Delta is a member of SkyTeam, the other major global alliance and has typically preferred to funnel passengers heading to Asia through Seoul Incheon International Airport (ICN) as part of its partnership with Korean Air.
Delta is the largest of the big three U.S. carriers at LAX but all of them operate a hub at the airport. This isn’t a defensive move, as the carrier is the last one to enter the market, but it has been making a major expansion push at the airport. In recent years, Delta has opened an overhauled terminal, known as the Sky Way at LAX, along with a new Delta One Lounge.
On the other hand, Seattle currently has no direct service to Hong Kong, so Delta would have had a major advantage on that route. It’s worth noting that nearby Vancouver has 5x daily service to Hong Kong on three different airlines, though the two cities aren’t exactly interchangeable.
Ultimately, this move seems based around bragging rights in Los Angeles as Delta attempts to position itself as the top carrier in the market. Given the fact that United and American (via its partnership with Cathay Pacific) have more frequencies on the route, one has to wonder how Delta will be able to compete.
Summary
Delta Air Lines has announced that it will return to Hong Kong for the first time since 2018. Beginning in June 2026, the Atlanta based carrier will operate one daily flight between Los Angeles and Hong Cong, competing head to head with United and Cathay Pacific on the route.
It’s interesting to see that Delta selected Los Angeles instead of its Seattle hub for the service, given the amount of competition that currently exists on the route, and it will be interesting to see how this flight performs.
One thing is certain . . . this will be the cheapest flight between the USA and Hong Kong. Without onward connections in HK and with an embarkation point that will only be convenient for those in Southern California – all others will have to fly out of their way to catch it – this route will only be of use to those to those from SoCal ending their journey in Hong Kong.