Delta Strikes Pilot Deal to Keep Jobs From Outsourcing to Virgin

Delta Air Lines Inc., working to keep peace with pilots ahead of union contract talks, agreed to retain its own international flights and not outsource trips to partner Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd.

One of the deal’s terms is the first of its kind in the industry, an assurance that Delta’s overseas operations always will stay larger than Virgin’s, said Rick Dominguez, executive administrator of the U.S. carrier’s chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association. The accord also ensures that Delta will use its own pilots and planes on trips to London, rather than letting Virgin pilots handle them.