Delayed Haneda slot talks produce agreement. Delta's divide on Tokyo unites American and United

At the strenuous urging of Delta Air Lines, the US government unilaterally postponed talks with Japan that were due to take place the week of 08-Feb-2016. The talks eventually led to an agreement that would finally grant daytime slots to US-Japan flights at Tokyo Haneda airport, slots which have already been enjoyed by airlines - and passengers - from countries including Canada, France, Germany and the UK.

The US Department of Transportation and Secretary Foxx had again submitted to pressure from the intense lobbying campaign that Delta mounted in Jan-2016. Delta opposed the Haneda deal, holding the view that the ANA/United and JAL/American partnerships will benefit more than Delta will. Delta argues that those two alliances will win local Tokyo traffic from it and cause Delta to cut back drastically its Tokyo hub, which connects to other parts of Asia. Extrapolating effectively on a grain of fact, Delta has galvanised support from politicians representing cities that it threatened with loss of Tokyo service, and resulting economic benefits. The political pressure - moreover in an election year - became too much for DoT, which has also failed to move on from the anti-Norwegian International and anti-Gulf campaigns that Delta has largely led.

The talks were rescheduled to 16/17-Feb-2016, signalling that the US was ready to move on, although not without some egg on its face. There could be more aeropolitical uncertainty in the future if Delta CEO Richard Anderson elects to use his executive chairman appointment to step back from day-to-day matters and take on more policy lobbying.