Commitments and Contingencies - Legal and Other Contingencies (Details) employee in Thousands	Jun. 30, 2017 employee
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Entity number of employees	87
Percentage of employees represented by unions under collective bargaining agreements	16.00%

Percentage Of Employees Represented By Unions Under Collective Bargaining Agreements

No definition available.

Name:	dal_PercentageOfEmployeesRepresentedByUnionsUnderCollectiveBargainingAgreements
Namespace Prefix:	dal_
Data Type:	num:percentItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	instant