8-K

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 OR 15(d) of the

Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): September 2, 2016

DELTA AIR LINES, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware	001-05424	58-0218548
(State or other jurisdiction  of incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(IRS Employer Identification No.)

P.O. Box 20706, Atlanta, Georgia 30320-6001

(Address of principal executive offices)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (404) 715-2600

Registrant’s Web site address: www.delta.com

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

o Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

o Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Item 7.01       Regulation FD Disclosure.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (“Delta”) issued today a press release reporting August 2016 financial and operating results. The press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1 to this Form 8-K.

In accordance with general instruction B.2 of Form 8−K, the information in this report (including the exhibit) that is being furnished pursuant to Item 7.01 of Form 8−K shall not be deemed to be “filed” for the purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act, as amended, or otherwise subject to liabilities of that section, nor shall they be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, except as expressly set forth in such filing. This report will not be deemed an admission as to the materiality of any information in the report that is required to be disclosed solely by Regulation FD.

Statements in this Form 8-K and the attached exhibit that are not historical facts, including statements regarding our estimates, expectations, beliefs, intentions, projections or strategies for the future, may be "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the estimates, expectations, beliefs, intentions, projections and strategies reflected in or suggested by the forward-looking statements.  These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the cost of aircraft fuel; the impact of rebalancing our hedge portfolio, recording mark-to-market adjustments or posting collateral in connection with our fuel hedge contracts; the availability of aircraft fuel; the effects of terrorist attacks or geopolitical conflict; the possible effects of accidents involving our aircraft; the restrictions that financial covenants in our financing agreements will have on our financial and business operations; labor issues; interruptions or disruptions in service at one of our hub or gateway airports; disruptions or security breaches of our information technology infrastructure; our dependence on technology in our operations; the effects of weather, natural disasters and seasonality on our business; the effects of an extended disruption in services provided by third party regional carriers; failure or inability of insurance to cover a significant liability at Monroe’s Trainer refinery; the impact of environmental regulation on the Trainer refinery, including costs related to renewable fuel standard regulations; our ability to retain management and key employees; competitive conditions in the airline industry; the effects of extensive government regulation on our business; the sensitivity of the airline industry to prolonged periods of stagnant or weak economic conditions; uncertainty in economic conditions and regulatory environment in the United Kingdom related to the likely exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union; and the effects of the rapid spread of contagious illnesses.  

Additional information concerning risks and uncertainties that could cause differences between actual results and forward-looking statements is contained in our Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2015 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended June 30, 2016.  Caution should be taken not to place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements, which represent our views only as of September 2, 2016, and which we have no current intention to update.

Item 9.01       Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d)  Exhibits.

Exhibit 99.1 Press Release dated September 2, 2016 titled “Delta Reports Financial and Operating Performance for August 2016”

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SIGNATURES

          Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

	DELTA AIR LINES, INC.
	By:  /s/ Paul A. Jacobson
Date:  September 2, 2016	Paul A. Jacobson Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

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EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit Number		Description
	Exhibit 99.1	Press Release dated September 2, 2016 titled “Delta Reports Financial and Operating Performance for August 2016”

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EX-99.1

Exhibit 99.1

 

CONTACT:	Corporate Communications
	404-715-2554
	news archive at news.delta.com
	Investor Relations
	404-715-2170

Delta Reports Financial and Operating Performance for August 2016

ATLANTA, September 2, 2016 – Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) today reported financial and operating performance for August 2016.

Consolidated passenger unit revenue (PRASM) for the month of August declined 9.5% year over year, as the company continues to see pressure from close-in domestic yield weakness, the ongoing supply-demand imbalance in the Transatlantic, and headwinds from its Yen hedge positions.

In addition, the outage Delta suffered in August resulted in 2,300 cancelled flights over a three day period. The outage and subsequent operational recovery efforts negatively impacted August revenue by approximately $100 million or 2 points of PRASM.

“We are grateful to our customers for continuing to rely on Delta for the superior customer service and operational performance you’ve come to expect from us,” said Ed Bastian, CEO – Delta Air Lines. “Our recovery effort exemplified the hard work and determination of Delta people worldwide, and all 80,000 remain dedicated to regaining your trust.”

The company’s financial and operating performance is detailed below.

Preliminary Financial and Operating Results
August consolidated PRASM change year over year	(9.5)%
August mainline completion factor	98.0%
August on-time performance (preliminary DOT A14)	79.9%

Delta Air Lines serves nearly 180 million customers each year. In 2016, Delta was named to Fortune’s top 50 Most Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired airline for the fifth time in six years. Additionally, Delta has ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for an unprecedented five consecutive years. With an industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 321 destinations in 56 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs more than 80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 800 aircraft. The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and participates in the industry’s leading transatlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a joint venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights, with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK and LaGuardia, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport facilities, global products and services, and technology to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional information is available on the Delta News Hub, as well as delta.com, Twitter @DeltaNewsHub, Google.com/+Delta, and Facebook.com/delta.

			Monthly Traffic Results (a)				Year to Date Traffic Results (a)
			Aug 2016	Aug 2015	Change		Aug 2016	Aug 2015	Change
RPMs (000):
	Domestic		11,833,254	12,013,759	(1.5%)		88,105,510	85,066,156	3.6%
		Delta Mainline	10,016,538	10,131,423	(1.1%)		74,227,920	71,092,608	4.4%
		Regional	1,816,715	1,882,336	(3.5%)		13,877,589	13,973,548	(0.7%)
	International		8,389,918	8,801,722	(4.7%)		57,400,260	57,630,450	(0.4%)
		Latin America	1,669,296	1,718,523	(2.9%)		14,138,250	13,521,697	4.6%
		Delta Mainline	1,626,144	1,682,685	(3.4%)		13,748,895	13,262,662	3.7%
		Regional	43,152	35,838	20.4%		389,355	259,035	50.3%
		Atlantic	4,496,377	4,648,008	(3.3%)		27,472,919	27,623,385	(0.5%)
		Pacific	2,224,244	2,435,191	(8.7%)		15,789,092	16,485,368	(4.2%)
	Total System		20,223,172	20,815,481	(2.8%)		145,505,770	142,696,606	2.0%
ASMs (000):
	Domestic		14,183,486	13,819,205	2.6%		103,859,092	98,894,343	5.0%
		Delta Mainline	11,895,479	11,533,073	3.1%		86,463,970	81,554,392	6.0%
		Regional	2,288,007	2,286,132	0.1%		17,395,122	17,339,951	0.3%
	International		9,767,853	10,012,009	(2.4%)		68,486,233	69,243,349	(1.1%)
		Latin America	1,928,119	1,994,307	(3.3%)		16,680,093	16,285,242	2.4%
		Delta Mainline	1,875,862	1,951,975	(3.9%)		16,198,120	15,955,921	1.5%
		Regional	52,257	42,332	23.4%		481,974	329,321	46.4%
		Atlantic	5,427,196	5,341,957	1.6%		33,940,703	33,793,513	0.4%
		Pacific	2,412,538	2,675,745	(9.8%)		17,865,437	19,164,594	(6.8%)
	Total System		23,951,339	23,831,214	0.5%		172,345,325	168,137,692	2.5%
Load Factor:
	Domestic		83.4%	86.9%	(3.5)	pts	84.8%	86.0%	(1.2)	pts
		Delta Mainline	84.2%	87.8%	(3.6)	pts	85.8%	87.2%	(1.4)	pts
		Regional	79.4%	82.3%	(2.9)	pts	79.8%	80.6%	(0.8)	pts
	International		85.9%	87.9%	(2.0)	pts	83.8%	83.2%	0.6	pts
		Latin America	86.6%	86.2%	0.4	pts	84.8%	83.0%	1.8	pts
		Delta Mainline	86.7%	86.2%	0.5	pts	84.9%	83.1%	1.8	pts
		Regional	82.6%	84.7%	(2.1)	pts	80.8%	78.7%	2.1	pts
		Atlantic	82.8%	87.0%	(4.2)	pts	80.9%	81.7%	(0.8)	pts
		Pacific	92.2%	91.0%	1.2	pts	88.4%	86.0%	2.4	pts
	Total System		84.4%	87.3%	(2.9)	pts	84.4%	84.9%	(0.5)	pts
Mainline Completion Factor			98.0%	99.8%	(1.8)	pts
Passengers Boarded			16,340,426	16,856,971	(3.1%)		123,713,175	120,611,324	2.6%
Cargo Ton Miles (000):			162,968	186,828	(12.8%)		1,303,064	1,472,525	(11.5%)

^a Results include flights operated under contract carrier arrangements