Here is a pretty funny article about Song's debut. I wonder why they only printed two negative comments? The plane had 199 people on board, I am sure somebody liked it.
Delta debuts Song, hopes for sweet note of success
April 15, 2003 7:13:00 PM ET
Julie MacIntosh
NEW YORK, April 15 (Reuters) - Delta Air Lines' (DAL) new lower-fare unit, Song, made every effort at its launch on Tuesday to show how different it is from Delta -- women bent into yoga poses in the middle of the airline terminal while a ponytailed man blended smoothies.
Song and Delta have spent months creating a lower-cost airline-within-an-airline that they think can succeed, even though many of the biggest U.S. airlines have miserably failed at such efforts in the past.
Some of Delta's toil is obvious -- Song's multicolored leather seats and eager-to-please crews are refreshingly different.
But Song's own passengers were largely caught unaware on Tuesday.
"So are they changing Delta's name to Song for good?" asked a confused Carla Schaefer, who arrived at New York's John F. Kennedy airport with no idea she was catching anything other than a regular Delta flight to Florida.
Schaefer, who flew Delta rival JetBlue Airways (JBLU) on her previous two trips to Florida, had not heard of Song before Tuesday morning, and was overwhelmed by all the festivities.
"To tell you the truth, I kind of have a headache," she said, as a live band played classic hits in the boarding area.
Passengers who fly Song from now on will be greeted with a calmer, though still colorful, atmosphere as the carrier gets down to the gritty business of surviving the U.S. airline industry's worst-ever downturn.
HIGH-STAKES GAMBLE
Industry analysts say Song is a long shot for Atlanta-based Delta, which is looking to protect its eroding market share along the eastern U.S. If Song is able to stay aloft despite higher costs at Delta that filter down into its business, it could cause serious headaches for JetBlue and Continental Airlines (CAL), Delta's biggest competitors in the New York-to-Florida market.
But Song is now faced with the tricky task of separating its identity, but not its balance sheets, from Delta. The launch of fresher, friendlier Song raised questions for some travelers over why the changes are not being made system-wide.
"Thanks, guys -- now I can avoid all the grouchy people over at the regular Delta," one woman said as she exited the plane on Tuesday.
Song, which charges between $79 and $299 per one-way flight, is banking on low unit costs to boost its results. But its pilots are covered by labor agreements at Delta that are more costly than those at other startup carriers.
Song's president John Selvaggio, who played the horn in the band on Tuesday, said in an interview that Song's costs per available seat mile in cents, a key measure of an airline's expenses, "Start with a seven." That compares to costs of about 10 cents per available seat mile at some of the biggest U.S. carriers, and about 6.5 cents at JetBlue.
Song has taken several big steps to lighten up its cost structure compared with Delta's. It will charge for the food on its flights -- $7, for example, for a baked ham and Swiss cheese sandwich or roast beef wrap, and $5 for one of its signature drinks. Song also turns its planes around far more quickly by starting clean-up before an arriving flight lands.
RESULTS CLOSELY HELD
It may be difficult to tell how Song performs financially, since Delta is not required to present all of its results separately from the rest of the company.
Despite all its efforts to develop a separate identity, Song is not positioned to jump out of Delta's nest, which resulted in foggy looks from some travelers on Tuesday.
Passengers who book their tickets on various Internet sites will still often see Song flights listed under Delta's name, or listed as flights run by a Delta affiliate or partner.
"We want to have a different brand, but obviously, Delta owns Song," Selvaggio said on Tuesday.
To win customers like those who have switched over to trendy JetBlue, Song pledges to have a state-of-the-art video, television and entertainment system fitted into the back of its seats by October.
But for the next five months, which could be the toughest ones yet for the airline industry, Song is hoping its customers can make do without the technology.
Song will roll out service this year between mainly eastern seaboard cities like Boston, New York, Fort Lauderdale and Atlanta, as well as Las Vegas. REUTERS
© 2003 Reuters