Delta Air Lines is coming for the “world’s largest airline,” United.
Speaking at the International Air Transport Association’s annual meeting underway in Rio de Janeiro, Delta President Peter Carter told CNBC that the company wants to become the biggest U.S. carrier for trans-Pacific travel, adding, “the real goal is to become the leading global carrier, which is a pretty audacious goal.”
Currently, United Airlines claims the title of world’s largest airline, based on revenue passenger miles, which measures miles flown by paying customers. Delta actually carries more passengers than United – over 200 million in 2025, compared to United’s 175 million passengers, according to the respective airlines.
However, longer flights can generate more revenue per passenger than shorter trips, and United currently dominates trans-Pacific travel.
Delta has been building up its Asia presence, in partnership with carriers like Korean Air and China Eastern. On Satruday, Delta launched a new nonstop service between Los Angeles and Hong Kong. And last June, Delta began a new direct service between Salt Lake City and Seoul, its Asia hub.
In May, United announced that later this year, it will launch new year-round service between Chicago and Tokyo and new seasonal service between San Francisco and Sapporo, Japan. United’s Asia hubs are in Tokyo and Guam, and its partners include airlines like Air India and ANA.
“A lot of our growth has been international,” United CEO Scott Kirby told Bloomberg at the IATA event. “International has just been gang busters for us.”
USA Today has reached out to United and Delta for comment. Both airlines offer direct and non-direct routes between the United States and numerous destinations across Asia and the larger Pacific region.
Credit: Delta
