4,000 Delta Air Lines workers accept severance offers

US-based carrier Delta Air Lines Inc, which is due to acquire another American carrier Northwest and become the world's largest carrier, has said that 4,000 of its employees have opted for voluntary severance, double the number it had targeted. The number also marks an increase over the total announced just two weeks ago, when on 30 May the carrier had said that 3,000 workers had accepted these offers.

Since then 1,000 more people have agreed to leave the Atlanta-based company, a company spokesperson said.

Delta had initially targeted 2,000 job cuts under a plan announced in March that also included trimming US capacity as much as 11 per cent and parking up to 90 of its planes and regional jets. In a CNBC interview last week, Delta Air Lines CEO Richard Anderson said his carrier will now cut 12 to 13 per cent of its domestic capacity this year.

Anderson also said that with record oil prices the merger makes even more sense than when it was first announced in April. According to his estimates, the combined carrier would generate efficiencies worth more than $1 billion achieved through cost savings and revenue growth.

Northwest Airlines has also announced capacity reduction by 12.6 per cent in the fourth quarter, though it could enhance these cuts further. On Thursday, it joined other major airlines in levying a $20 round-trip fuel surcharge on domestic fares.