How Old Is Atlanta’s ‘Fly Delta Jets’ Sign?

Taking off from, or landing on, Runway 8R at Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, you’ll probably notice a large neon sign reading ‘Fly Delta Jets.’

The sign, which stands atop Delta’s Technical Operations Center, was first unveiled in 1968 and has since evolved into a company symbol and a local landmark. The sign is nearly 400 feet long, and each red neon letter is 20 feet high and 42 inches wide, according to the Delta Flight Museum.

The sign took on a deeper symbolism in the 2000s as the U.S. airline industry dealt with a series of challenges including a steep decline in traffic following the September 11 terror attacks, competition from no-frills airlines, and rising fuel costs following Hurricane Katrina.

Several airlines sought bankruptcy protection. United filed under Chapter 11 in December 2002. Northwest filed in 2007 and merged with Delta in 2007. US Airways filed in August 2002, emerged from bankruptcy in 2003, filed again in September 2004, and merged with America West in 2007.

Delta and Northwest filed for protection within a half-hour of each other on September 15, 2005. At the time, Delta had gone more than four years without reporting a profitable quarter.

During its financial turbulence, the Fly Delta Jets sign was turned off as a cost-saving measure. For a couple of years, it stood dark alongside Runway 8R as a reminder of the airline’s financial struggles.

While Delta was under bankruptcy protection, US Airways launched a hostile takeover attempt that was rejected by Delta’s creditors. On January 31, 2007, Delta executives and employees celebrated this rejection by re-lighting the once-iconic Fly Delta Jets sign and blasting U2’s “Beautiful Day.”

Delta emerged from bankruptcy protection on April 30, 2007.

Delta’s Technical Operations Center

It takes a large building to house a 400-foot sign, and Delta’s Technical Operations Center certainly qualifies. The complex opened in 1960, shortly after Delta began offering Douglas DC-8 and Convair 880 jetliner service on its passenger routes.

With a front 587 feet wide, the center’s main hanger is nearly the length of two football fields. The facility’s 401,000 square feet cover nine acres and offer room for Delta to work on three planes at once. At its opening, the facility had 135 miles of electrical wire (and probably has more now).

In short, it’s a big building topped by a big neon sign.

Delta’s History

Delta Air Lines traces its origins to a crop-dusting company founded in 1925 in Macon, Georgia. The first commercial agricultural flying company, Huff Daland Dusters’ 18 planes was the largest privately owned air fleet at the time, with operations across the southeastern and western United States.

After moving to Monroe, Louisiana, and being renamed Delta Air Service, the airline’s first passenger flight took place in 1929 with service between Dallas and Jackson, Mississippi (with two stops along the way). The single-engine plane featured an enclosed cabin and room for five passengers. The 400-mile flight took more than five hours, including a half-hour stop for lunch in Monroe.

In those early days, airline travel was predominantly business-focused, with passenger routes subsidized by government contracts to move mail between cities.

Delta moved its headquarters from Monroe to Atlanta in 1941. During World War II, the airline modified more than a thousand planes and supported the war effort by training pilots and mechanics.

Over the years, other Delta milestones included developing the hub-and-spoke system in 1955, adopting electronic reservations in the early 1960s, and becoming a global carrier by purchasing Pan-Am’s international routes in 1991.

More recent developments have taken place under the red neon glow of the “Fly Delta Jets” sign. One of the interesting twists about the sign’s location is that, given Delta’s dominance of the Atlanta market, you’re most likely to see the sign while you’re on a Delta jet.