Delta Air Lines will scale back its flights from two New York City hubs this winter during the slowest months of the season.

The carrier will cut nearly 20 percent of its flying from John F. Kennedy? International Airport (JFK) and LaGuardia Airport (LGA) during January and February, according to data in Cirium that was reported by The Points Guy.

At JFK in particular, Delta will reduce flights by 16 percent and at LGA the cuts will amount to 19 percent.
In addition to those changes, there will be a 10 percent reduction in flights for November, December, March and April, per TPG.

According to the Atlanta-based carrier, about 50 peak-day trips per month in November, the first half of December, along with March 2026 through October 2026, will be removed. In January and February, meanwhile, the carrier will cut a full 75 peak-day trips.

To be clear, the news does not mean any routes from New York City will be eliminated. At least not at the moment.
TPG reports that all routes scheduled for the coming winter are still slated to continue.

What the changes do mean is that Delta Air Lines will be scaling back the number of flights on a particular route, as well as the frequency of those flights. As an example, flights from LGA to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, will shift from three daily flights to one.

A Delta Air Lines spokesperson told TPG that "following the FAA's extension of the NYC slot utilization waiver through Summer 2026, Delta is making select adjustments to our winter schedule at LaGuardia (LGA) and John F. Kennedy (JFK) airports. ... We apologize for any inconvenience that these schedule changes may cause. Delta remains committed to minimizing travel disruptions while ensuring a smooth transition for all impacted travelers."

The TPG explained that Delta was planning to use its entire slot portfolio at each of the New York hubs this winter. But then Federal Aviation Administration announced that it would extended a so-called "utilization waiver" it had issued through summer 2026. That waiver means airlines are not required to use all of the slots they have been awarded at an airport.

Historically, slots have been awarded to carriers on a use-it-or-lose-it basis.

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