Simply the Best?
Delta Airlines sued in Moore
By Sarah A. Reid
Staff writer
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Staff file photoThis 2006 photo shows fire trucks shooting water over the first Delta Airlines flight from Atlanta to Moore County Airport.
CARTHAGE — The Moore County Airport Authority is suing Delta Air Lines for breach of contract, accusing the airline of spotty service, lost luggage and hampered marketing.
The legal dispute is a far cry from the fanfare that marked Delta’s arrival in Moore County in June 2006. Last November, the airline announced it would cease its seasonal Delta Connection flights at Southern Pines because of poor ticket sales. But, according to the complaint, Delta failed to even include Southern Pines on its reservations Web site.
The lawsuit, filed Feb. 13 in Moore County Superior Court, accuses Delta of breach of contract. The Airport Authority had lured Delta by offering an incentives package that included revenue guarantees. But the airline failed to live up to its side of the bargain, the complaint said.
“Delta’s failure to provide quality service and operation ... as well as other delays, problems, and errors on the part of Delta, inconvenienced and alienated passengers,” the suit says.
That creating bad publicity, created serious “scheduling implications” with the Transportation Security Administration and cost the authority money for extra staffing, the complaint states.
During golfing season, the airline connected travelers through its Atlanta hub up to six times a week.
The contract with Delta said the Airport Authority agreed to pay for lodging and other expenses related to training its employees to work for Delta. It also agreed to provide ticketing, processing, baggage, boarding and discharge services. The authority waived airport fees, gave Delta’s planes fuel at cost, and paid to help passengers who were displaced because of delays or lost bags.
The authority agreed to pay Delta a maximum of $500,000 in 2006, and up to $700,000 in 2007, depending on Delta’s revenues.
Delta claimed the authority owes it $700,000 for the 2007 service, according to the lawsuit. The authority has not paid Delta, and it says Delta was in breach of contract.
“In addition the Airport Authority disputes Delta’s method of calculating revenue losses as set forth in the invoice,” the complaint says.
Late flights
The authority alleges many of Delta’s flights into Southern Pines last year were more than an hour late. At least one flight was more than six hours late.
“Customers bags were consistently lost,” the complaint says. “As Pinehurst is a golf destination and many passengers would bring their clubs, this created a serious problem.”
Customers who used a toll-free number or Delta’s reservations Web site often couldn’t find the Southern Pines airport, or were told there weren’t flights available on days when there were flights, according to the lawsuit.
Fares initially were very high, but during the start of the 2007 season Delta offered reduced rates. The Airport Authority, which was also responsible for marketing the flights, was not told about those reduced rates soon enough to advertise them effectively, according to the complaint.
Other promotions paid by the authority and community partners were not launched correctly because of delays gaining approval from Delta, according to the complaint. An in-flight movie, which the authority paid for, was never aired.
Thomas Van Camp, the lawyer representing the authority, did not return a call for comment. A Delta spokeswoman said the company does not comment on pending litigation.
Staff writer Sarah A. Reid can be reached at [email protected] or 323-4848, ext. 280.
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