Last month, Delta signed a letter of intent to rehabilitate LAX Terminals Two and Three and to move there from Terminal Five. Nothing happens unless the airport and the Los Angeles City Council approve the deal.
If they do, "We need to rehab and reconstruct Two and Three to make a first class customer experience -- {which} we did in New York," said Ranjan Goswami, Delta's vice president of sales, West. "We have a great track record of building customer friendly facilities.
With Los Angeles bidding for the 2024 Olympic Games, "Our goal, if we reach agreement, is that this will be done in time for the games," said Goswami, who seemed confident that Los Angeles will win the bidding.
Goswami declined to specify the cost of the improvements, but a source familiar with LAX planning said Delta is prepared to spend "north of $1 billion" to build the facility it wants. Typically, airport improvement projects are funded with fees collected from airlines and their passengers.
A move would give Delta more gates, closer to its partner airlines on the north side of the airport. Delta currently uses 16 gates, including 13 in Terminal Five and three in Terminal Six. It's too soon to say how many gates new terminals would provide.
Besides building facilities, Delta wants to become even better known in Los Angeles. "What being a global carrier really means is being hyper-local," said Goswami. As an example, he said that by sponsoring the Los Angeles Lakers, Delta promotes its presence not only at LAX but also in China, where the NBA has a strong following...