Delta Relaunches Two South American Routes from New York

Delta Air Lines will resume two popular routes to South America from New York JFK as part of its Joint Venture with LATAM Group.

In October this year, the Atlanta-based carrier will relaunch two direct services from its hub at New York’s John F. Kennedy (JFK) to Rio de Janeiro (GIG) and Buenos Aires (EZE), more than three years since the route was suspended in March 2020 due to the pandemic restrictions.

Delta’s return to Buenos Aires comes after a hiatus of more than a decade. Launching on October 28, the seasonal, nonstop flights to the Argentinian capital will depart JFK at 8:50 PM each day, touching down in Buenos Aires at 9:00 AM the following morning. The return leg will depart at 9:15 PM, arriving back in New York at 5:35 AM the next day.

Photo: Buenos Aires, Puente de La Mujer. Courtesy of Francisco Ghisletti / Unsplash

Then, from December 16, Delta’s new seasonal service to Rio de Janeiro is scheduled to leave New York at 8:30 PM each evening, arriving by 8:20 AM the next day. The return journey leaves from the Brazilian city at 10:20 AM, touching down at JFK at 6:30 PM.

Delta will operate a Boeing 767-400ER aircraft to operate the JFK-Buenos Aires route, which has a total capacity of 238 passengers across four cabins, including 34 Delta One suites, 20 Premium Select seats, 28 Comfort+ seats, and the remaining 156 seats in the main cabin.

For the Rio de Janeiro service, the carrier will operate the smaller variant, a Boeing 767-300ER, which offers 226 seats across three classes—Delta One, Delta Comfort+, and the Main Cabin.

Photo: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil / Courtesy of Agustin Diaz Gargiulo on Unsplash

“Since implementing our Joint Venture, we’ve been working closely with LATAM to introduce exciting new routes that are expanding opportunities for customers traveling between the U.S. and South America,” said Alex Antilla, Vice President for Latin America at Delta. “Together, we’re offering New Yorkers the most flights and the best experience for travel between the two continents.”

Since the Joint Venture between Delta Air Lines and LATAM was approved in September 2022, Delta has been trying to gain more of a foothold in the South American market. Other destinations that the Joint Venture serves directly from JFK include Sao Paulo (GRU), Lima (LIM), Santiago de Chile (SCL), and Bogota (BOG).

“We are happy to work with Delta to grow our joint presence between the Americas,” said Marin St. George, Chief Commercial Officer at LATAM Airlines Group. “As South America’s largest airline, we are excited to work with them to offer our customers more flight options and a world-class on-board experience.”