Delta Air Lines will resume flights at Dallas Love Field in July

Delta Air to return to Dallas Love Field

DALLAS — Delta Air Lines Inc. said Friday it will begin flights to and from Dallas Love Field this summer.

The move will put Delta, the world’s largest airline operator, head-to-head against Southwest Airlines Co., the dominant carrier at close-in Love Field.

To meet with legal restrictions at Love Field, Delta will operate three daily nonstop flights between Dallas and Memphis, Tenn., with 50-seat regional jets. Federal law limits nonstop flights from Love Field to states far from Texas, including Tennessee, but there is an exception for planes with 56 or fewer seats.

Atlanta-based Delta said the service would begin July 6 and be operated by Pinnacle Airlines under the Delta Connection name. Delta affiliates already offer three daily flights to Memphis from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.

Executive Vice President Glen Hauenstein said Delta’s customers wanted convenience of flying in and out of Love Field, which is closer than DFW to downtown Dallas. From Delta’s Memphis hub, passengers could connect to flights to about 90 other locations.

Delta offered flights on subsidiary Atlantic Southeast at Love Field several years ago but pulled out in 2003. It also greatly reduced the number of flights at DFW Airport, where AMR Corp.’s American Airlines is the dominant carrier.

Besides Southwest, Continental Express also operates flights at Love Field. AMR’s American Eagle has said it will halt its last service at Love Field, to Chicago, in June.

Delta also operates Northwest Airlines.