According to C. E. Woolman, Delta’s principal founder and first CEO, it was his longtime assistant Catherine FitzGerald (picture), who coined the name “Delta” in 1928.

As Woolman recalled, “When we got into the passenger business and decided to change the company name, we looked for a short name, preferably with five letters. It was Miss FitzGerald who said, ‘Delta.’”  The new name fit the crop dusting company Huff Daland Dusters, based in the delta region of the Mississippi River.

The new name influenced the shape of our first passenger service logo–a triangle–representing the “D” of the Greek alphabet, which is “Delta.” At center is a winged Mercury, the Roman god of travel and commerce.

To celebrate 80 years of service on June 17th, we are sharing stories from the people who launched Delta and from their families about those early days.  Read earlier stories: 1940s In Flight Service, Flying Prop Planes, 1930s Customer Service

Marie Force

Archives Manager