Earlier today, Delta Air Lines published its financial figures for Q4 2022, the year, and its outlook for Q1 2023. The Atlanta-based carrier finished 2022 with an adjusted operating revenue of $45.6 billion, making it the seventh-strongest year in its history.
Continuing an uphill climb in 2022
One day after being blasted in the media for changing its lounge policies, Delta Air Lines released its financial figures for Q4 2022 and the entire year. Delta closed 2022 with an adjusted operating revenue just 2% lower than 2019, making it seem like the airline had an incredible year.
Though demand increased significantly, there was no shortage of difficulties. Rising fuel costs and inflation drove Delta’s operating expenses up to about $42 billion for the year, an almost $2 billion increase from 2019. As a result of increased operating costs and other issues, Delta’s net income for 2022 was less than half of 2019 figures.
Long-time Delta CEO Ed Bastian was very positive in speaking about the airline’s strong 2022, stating that its employees rose to face the challenges of 2022. Delta staff will receive more than $500 million in profit-sharing payments next month.
“As we move into 2023, the industry backdrop for air travel remains favorable and Delta is well positioned to deliver significant earnings and free cash flow growth. We expect to grow 2023 revenue by 15 to 20 percent and improve unit costs year-over-year, supporting a full-year outlook for earnings of $5 to $6 per share and keeping us on track to achieve more than $7 of earnings per share in 2024.”
Finances have struggled to reach and surpass 2019 levels, but travel demand and passenger revenue have not. In Q4 last year, Delta experienced a 7% passenger revenue increase in its domestic operations and a 5% increase internationally. Premium revenue has also grown significantly, with Delta closing Q4 at a 13% increase over 2019.
Other positives from 2022
In addition to being a positive year financially, Delta has a wide variety of things to celebrate from last year. The airline’s frequent flyer program, SkyMiles, gained an additional 8.5 million members in 2022, making it the strongest year on record. Another record was broken with the Delta American Express credit cards, with 1.2 million people signing up in 2022.
Sixty-nine aircraft were delivered to Delta last year, some new and some used. All new aircraft added to Delta’s fleet last year were from European manufacturer Airbus, with the carrier adding new A220-300s, A321neos, A330neos, and A350-900s. The Atlanta-based carrier also added several used Boeing 737-900ER aircraft.
Until the Farnborough Airshow, which took place in July 2022, Delta was the only carrier of the ‘big four’ American carriers that had not ordered any of Boeing’s 737 MAX aircraft. At the airshow in the United Kingdom, Delta changed that and placed a massive 100-aircraft order with a further 30 options for the largest Boeing 737 MAX variant, the -10. When the order was placed, Delta announced that it expected to take the MAX 10s between 2025-2029, but the certification delay of the variant may delay those deliveries.
