Delta partner Aeromexico unveils 3 new cities in US expansion

Delta Air Lines flyers will have three new options to Mexico City come January.

Partner and fellow SkyTeam Alliance member Aeromexico plans to launch new service from Mexico City’s Benito Juarez International Airport (MEX) to:

• Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) on Jan. 14, 2027
• John Wayne Airport (SNA) in Orange County, California, on Jan. 11, 2027
• Portland International Airport (PDX) in Oregon on Jan. 21, 2027

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All three routes will operate daily with a Boeing 737 MAX 8 outfitted with 166 seats.

Aeromexico and Delta have an immunized joint venture between the U.S. and Mexico that allows them to operate as essentially one airline in the market. The pact allows them to coordinate commercial activities, from schedules to fares, and jointly sell each other’s flights in both markets.

Delta SkyMiles loyalty program members receive reciprocal loyalty benefits on Aeromexico flights, and can earn and redeem points.

Potential limits on Mexican airlines

The new Aeromexico routes come amid concerns that U.S. authorities could downgrade Mexico’s safety rating to Category 2 as soon as February 2027. The rating is a measure of a country’s aviation safety regime and regulator, and not of the safety of any one individual airline. If a downgrade occurs, Mexican airlines would be barred from adding new flights to the U.S., though they could continue operating existing schedules.

A downgrade of Mexico’s rating does not change U.S. airlines’ ability to serve the country.

The new routes from Aeromexico, and competitor Volaris, come ahead of the potential downgrade. Since August, discounter Volaris has unveiled new service to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), Nashville International Airport (BNA), Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) and Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) with flights beginning before the end of the year.

Mexico’s safety rating was previously Category 2 from 2021 through 2023.

The potential downgrade is the latest in a years-long tiff between the U.S. and Mexico over air service. The disagreement dates to 2022 when a second airport for Mexico City, Felipe Ángeles International Airport (NLU), opened and the Mexican government unilaterally reduced the number of slots available at MEX.

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That prompted complaints from airlines and claims by U.S. officials that Mexico was in violation of the countries’ open skies agreement. The dispute culminated when the Department of Transportation moved to end the Delta-Aeromexico joint venture in 2024 and barring Mexican airlines from adding new U.S. flights from Mexico City.

A court ruled in August that the joint venture could continue and, earlier in October, the DOT lifted its restrictions on Mexican airlines adding U.S. flights from Mexico City.

Delta strongholds with no competition

Aeromexico’s new routes link its Mexico City to strong Delta cities in the U.S. PDX, for example, was the airline’s main gateway to Asia until the 2000s and it retains a large loyalty base in the city, though Alaska Airlines is now the dominant carrier there.

Similarly at FLL, Delta is the largest network carrier at the airport and second there only to market leader JetBlue Airways.

Aeromexico will have its three new markets to itself: no airlines fly from MEX to either FLL, PDX or SNA, schedule data from aviation analytics firm Cirium shows.

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Source: thepointsguy.com