Last evening I had the opportunity to take the #7 line out to Flushing, home of Queens Theatre in the Park in New York City. This magnificent facility, which has just completed a $23 million renovation, is host once again to the 12th annual 2008 Latino Cultural Festival. Delta Air Lines is a proud sponsor of the festival for the eighth year in a row.

The Festival, which ran from July 23rd through August 3rd, brought together some of the best Latino musicians, dancers, and artists from around the world. And, what a performance it was that I saw! While I’m sure that the 15 other performances offered over the course of the 12-day event were equally terrific, the dance troupe that performed last evening, Camerino 4 from Mexico, was nothing short of spectacular. One of the three pieces that this group performed was a world debut. The evening was a treat not to be missed, right here in the borough of Queens.

Before the show, it was my pleasure to spend a few minutes chatting with Mr. Jeff Rosenstock, Executive Director of the theatre and other members of his staff. During our conversation, we compared notes on the rich diversity of Queens – literally America’s most diverse county, where 25 percent of the population is of Hispanic heritage. I shared just how pleased and privileged Delta was to again be a part of something so special, and how wonderfully this event – and others like it – aligns with our continuing international expansion.

I was especially grateful for the warm comments offered to me by Ms. Claudia Norman, the theatre’s Artist Director of Latino Programming, who explained the special value of Delta’s relationship to the theatre and the Festival. As she explained, our sponsorship helps to enable her work in traveling to Latin America to identify the artists and acts that she assembles for the event, and bring them to Queens to perform. We’re delighted to do our small part to help bring such an immersing celebration of Latino culture and performance art to New York.

Another Delta colleague, Yvonne Green, from our hub at JFK, summed it up wonderfully: “I went yesterday to the Noche Flamanca show and I can tell you that the show was SPECTACULAR. The applause from the public was very long at the end of the show and we were all standing at the same time as a thank you to them for so incredible and wonderful show.”

All of us at Delta Air Lines were proud to share this tremendously successful show with New York. As always, thank you for your support. We appreciate your business.

Brian T. Rutter

Director – Sales & Marketing

New York

37 years ago Northeast Airlines merged with Delta on August 1, 1971. The merger expanded our operations between New England and Florida and to Bermuda and the Bahamas, as you can see in the linked map. The merger also brought the Boeing 727, a mid-size, narrow, 3-engine jet, to Delta — the first of many in our fleet.

Here’s a rare photo of a Northeast Airlines Boeing 727 in merger markings. The 727 is in the Northeast Yellowbird paint scheme with a Delta “widget” logo added beside the front cabin door.

The 21 Boeing 727s from Northeast Airlines included -95 models, the first -200 “stretched model” to be placed into airline service (on December 14, 1967) and the 500th 727 to come off the Boeing production line. By 1981, at its peak, Delta’s 727-200 fleet numbered up to 129—the largest fleet in the world of this type of aircraft.

If anyone has a photo of a plane in Northeast/Delta merger markings that they would like to share, please let me know.

Marie Force

Archives Manager