By Esther Fung

There is a new contender aiming to deliver your e-commerce packages door-to-door, nationwide: Delta Air Lines.

Delta is now carrying tens of thousands of packages a day -- products such as Figs scrubs and Arezzo shoes -- through a new parcel service introduced last year. While small in comparison, Delta Cargo DeliverDirect is nipping at the heels of parcel giants FedEx and United Parcel Service.

The airline is taking advantage of unused space in the cargo holds of its planes.

"We've taught people really well to put suitcases up in the bin," said Jeffrey Elder, head of cargo products at Delta Air Lines. Belly space at Delta has also opened up in recent years as the U.S. Postal Service began delivering more letters and parcels using its own trucks.

Delta uses a technology platform called SmartKargo, which links flight schedules to trucking companies that carry packages on the first and final legs of their journeys.

The carrier aims to deliver hundreds of thousands of packages a day in the U.S. in the coming years. UPS delivered an average of 19 million packages a day domestically in 2024. FedEx's Express and Ground units delivered an average of 15 million parcels a day in its fiscal year ended May 2024.

Cargo generally accounts for less than 3% of passenger airlines' revenue. In recent quarters, revenue from the cargo units in Delta, American Airlines Group and United Airlines Holdings has outpaced passenger revenue growth, helping insulate against fluctuations in ticket sales.

American and United also are carrying more e-commerce packages in their cargo holds, but they don't offer the door-to-door service that Delta does.

There are potential drawbacks to sending a package on a passenger flight: Deliveries could be vulnerable to air-travel delays. And a package might get bumped from its flight. Passenger luggage gets first dibs for plane belly space. Human organ or tissue deliveries and human remains also get priority over other cargo.

But some businesses are seeking cheaper alternatives to traditional delivery services. Passenger airlines can generally get a parcel delivered within 2 1/2 days, often at a lower price.

GoBolt, a logistics-service provider handling inventory and package deliveries for 400 brands in North America, started using Delta's DeliverDirect service in April. So far, it has gone well, said Jarrett Stewart, a senior vice president at GoBolt.

Delta's on-time performance has been on par with FedEx and UPS, and its delivery costs are 20% to 25% cheaper, Stewart said. Delivering 1,000 parcels by truck for the middle leg of a trip from New Jersey to Miami might cost around $3,000, or $3 for a parcel; with a passenger airline, the cost of the middle leg could be pennies for a parcel, Stewart said. GoBolt plans to use other passenger airlines for deliveries, too, he said.

Write to Esther Fung at esther.fung@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 25, 2025 16:56 ET (20:56 GMT)

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