Detroit overtakes Minneapolis as Delta Air Lines' second busiest hub

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Detroit overtakes Minneapolis as Delta Air Lines' second busiest hub

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Chad Newton CEO at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport | Detroit Metro Airport

By Sky Industry News

Apr 26, 2025

Delta Air Lines' hub operations have seen a shift, with Detroit surpassing Minneapolis to become the airline's second busiest hub. Data from Cirium Diio confirms this change, noting that between the first quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2025, Minneapolis held the position of the second busiest hub. However, Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport has now taken over, showing a marginal increase in activity.

During the second quarter of 2025, Detroit is expected to rank as the 18th-busiest airport in the United States. In the same period, 18 passenger airlines will operate there. Delta is projected to conduct 74% of the airport's movements, solidifying its strong presence. Spirit Airlines ranks as the second-largest operator at the location, and notably, Detroit is experiencing growth in operations compared to other airports in Delta’s top 20.

Chad Newton, CEO at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, is steering the airport as it becomes the second-busiest hub for Delta. With only five more daily movements, Detroit overtakes Minneapolis, a former Northwest hub, indicating growth in Delta’s operations in the area. By May, Detroit is set to occupy the second position, further widening its lead over Minneapolis in the third quarter with an additional 12 daily movements.

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The growth is attributed to it being Delta’s fastest-growing hub. During the second quarter of 2025, movements increased by 9% compared to the previous year. In contrast, Minneapolis and Atlanta grew by 5% and 8%, respectively. In the third quarter, expected movements will rise 13% to 686 daily—a significant increase from early 2020 figures, though still below the peak from 15 years ago.

Delta has added 10 new routes to its network out of Detroit, with no reductions in existing destinations. These new routes will either wholly or partly operate between April and June. New routes include Bangor, Bozeman, Destin-Fort Walton Beach, and Dublin, among others. Dublin, Pensacola, and Tulum are new destinations for Delta from Detroit.

Between April and June, Delta and Delta Connection will operate flights to 122 destinations. This includes 22 international destinations with 47 daily movements, notable among them being Toronto and Amsterdam. Domestically, Delta's network covers 100 airports, making up 93% of their operations. New York is the busiest state, followed by Michigan, Florida, California, and Wisconsin. Montana will have the least service, with a new weekly flight commencing to Bozeman.