DELTA AIR LINES, INC. recently released its 10-Q report for the September 2026 quarter. Delta Air Lines, Inc. provides scheduled passenger and cargo air transportation in the United States and abroad, and it also operates aircraft maintenance and engineering services, repair and overhaul work, and vacation packages. The company runs two segments, Airline and Refinery, and its network is built around major domestic hubs including Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Salt Lake City, along with coastal hubs in Boston, Los Angeles, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK and Seattle, plus international hubs and market positions in Amsterdam, Bogota, Lima, Mexico City, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Santiago, Sao Paulo, Seoul-Incheon and Tokyo.
For the September 2026 quarter, Delta reported operating income of $1.5 billion, down $230 million from the September 2025 quarter. Total operating revenue rose to $20.2 billion from $16.7 billion, an increase of $3.5 billion, while operating expense climbed to $18.7 billion from $15.0 billion, up $3.7 billion.
Passenger revenue increased to $15.5 billion from $13.5 billion, led by premium ticket revenue of $6.8 billion, main cabin revenue of $6.8 billion, and loyalty travel awards revenue of $1.3 billion. Cargo revenue rose 29% to $301 million, while other revenue jumped 48% to $4.4 billion, driven by refinery sales of $2.6 billion, loyalty and related revenue of $1.3 billion, and MRO revenue of $296 million.
On a unit basis, total revenue per available seat mile rose to 25.46 cents from 21.09 cents, while adjusted TRASM increased to 22.18 cents from 19.22 cents. Domestic passenger revenue increased 16% to $10.6 billion on flat capacity, Atlantic passenger revenue rose 11% to $3.3 billion, Latin America revenue increased 14% to $867 million, and Pacific revenue climbed 13% to $756 million.
Operating costs were pushed higher by fuel and labor. Salaries and related costs increased to $4.8 billion from $4.4 billion, aircraft fuel and related taxes surged to $4.4 billion from $2.6 billion, and refinery expense rose to $2.6 billion from $1.5 billion. Delta said the fuel increase reflected a 63% rise in its average jet fuel purchase price, while salaries rose after 4% base pay increases for eligible employees and pilots, plus higher premium pay tied to operational disruptions.
Non-operating results moved sharply lower, swinging to a $380 million expense from $93 million of income a year earlier. The change was mainly tied to mark-to-market losses on equity investments, compared with gains in the prior-year quarter.
Cash from operating activities totaled $1.7 billion, supported by ticket sales and SkyMiles sales to partners, including $2.3 billion of remuneration from American Express. Investing activities used $1.3 billion, mostly for capital expenditures, leaving free cash flow of $463 million. Delta also recorded $1.2 billion of cash outflows for debt and finance lease repayments, and ended the quarter with $6.9 billion of liquidity.
For the first nine months of 2026, operating revenue reached $55.8 billion, up from $47.4 billion a year earlier, while operating expense rose to $52.0 billion from $43.0 billion. Operating income for the nine-month period was $3.8 billion, compared with $4.4 billion in the prior year. Following these announcements, the company's shares moved -1.0%, and are now trading at a price of $82.14. For the full picture, make sure to review DELTA AIR LINES, INC.'s 10-Q report.
