Karen Walker/ATLANTA
FEW COMPANIES EPITOMISE the corporate USA as neatly as Delta Air Lines, with its under-stated red, white and blue livery and conservative reputation. The appearance, therefore, of one of its McDonnell Douglas MD-11s, decked out in a spectacular paint scheme of vibrantly coloured stars, prompts a double-take. The aircraft's livery is just one method by which Delta proudly declares itself the official airline of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in the airline's home city of Atlanta, Georgia.
Equally memorable is an encounter with Terrence Burns, Delta's managing director for Olympics programmes. Young, energetic and passionately enthusiastic about his project, Burns gives the impression that he could finish the triathlon with breath to spare. That is just as well, because the airline is about enter the world stage in a major way, and surplus energy - which Burns seems to possess in abundance - will be a useful commodity.
The Olympic Games will open on 19 July and more than 2 million visitors are anticipated. As the official airline, Delta will be responsible for conveying many of those people into and out of the city, but its involvement in the Olympic event stretches beyond that role. The airline's official status is that of a Centennial Olympic Games Partner, but Delta is also a sponsor of the Czech Republic, Greek, Irish and UK Olympic teams; a major contributor towards the $200 million refurbishment of Atlanta's Hartsfield International Airport; a fund-raiser through its Olympic "Aid for Children" programme; a supplier of volunteer staff to help out during the Games; and the carrier of the Olympic Flame from Athens to Los Angeles.
All these commitments have kept Burns' team of 12 on the run over the past few months. The pace is reaching frenetic speed as the giant digital clock over Atlanta's central highway counts down the days. Burns has every confidence in his people. "We are all type 'A' personalities, which means we are not necessarily the best team-players, but I would rather have to pull the reins on people than have to wake them up. You can't do this without getting passionate about it and they love what they do. We all know that being an Olympic sponsor is a higher calling and that this is bigger than anything else," says Burns.
sound business
Delta's sponsorship is not founded just on sentiment, however. It is also based on sound business criteria which are already bearing fruit for an airline which was once regarded as a "home-town" southern-USA domestic carrier, but which now carries more than 85 million passengers worldwide every year. Promoting that international business has been a key part of Delta's strategy as a sponsor.
Burns outlines the three main reasons critical to Delta's decision to become involved actively in the Games. "Firstly, it was a good business decision. Secondly, this is in our own town and we would not have let our city down. It's the most significant thing that has happened in this city ever since General Sherman walked in. Delta's history is entwined with Atlanta and you cannot divorce them. So there was no way we would not have wanted to be the official airline," he says. "Thirdly, it's very good for employee morale. What started as a marketing programme has become a company-wide programme," he adds.
Delta was involved in this event years before it gained status as a partner and can even be credited with helping to bring the Games to Atlanta. The airline flew many Olympic officials to Atlanta when the city was bidding to be host and Billy Payne, president and chief executive of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG), has become a Delta million-mile passenger. "Delta has been at our side from the very start of our efforts to get the bid," says Payne. "I can't imagine anyone else being the Atlanta Games official airline. In fact, I can't think of a bigger promoter of Atlanta than Delta - its presence here goes a long way to making Atlanta an international city."
Delta's commitment was not automatic, however. In the early 1990s, as the ACOG was knocking on doors seeking partner-level sponsors, Delta (along with the airline industry in general) was going through the worst recession ever witnessed. "We had to answer a lot of questions from Wall Street and internally, and we had to explain that it would be handled as a business opportunity," says Burns.
Under its agreement with the ACOG, Delta reduced its cash outlay by making two-thirds of its contribution a barter deal in which the airline provides travel and cargo services to the ACOG. The cash contribution - less than $10 million - has been taken from existing advertising and promotional budgets, so that Delta has not had to commit any new marketing dollars. Delta president and chief executive Ronald Allen says that reducing the cash outlay to one-third, by using Delta's ability to provide transportation as partial payment, was a key factor in the carrier's Olympic-sponsorship package.
Delta's business goals are well-defined, says Burns. "We knew that going in with an Olympic sponsorship was a marvellous opportunity, but only as good as you make it," he says. "In addition, you only have two years to maximise that opportunity." Delta's partnership agreement was signed in July 1994 and all of its rights expire on 31 December, 1996. Burns says that Delta's mission statement for the Olympic programme is to drive incremental revenue and to align Delta's corporate identity with the Olympics and the Olympic ideal.
He says that the Olympic symbol, with its five interlocking rings representing the continents, is the most recognised trademark in the world. "That's a pretty powerful thing," he says, "but it's more than that - there is also a tremendous feeling of goodwill towards that symbol. Therefore, as a marketeer, you make a leap of faith that someone will want to buy your product because it's associated with that symbol."
More specifically, Delta feels that association with the Olympics has "high-cachet" value. Many blue-chip companies are associated with the Games - other sponsors and partners include companies such as Coca-Cola, Kodak, Motorola and Visa.
Delta wanted to raise the awareness of the frequent business traveller, the carrier's "bread and butter", and it considers that association with the Olympics is good for the business traveller, says Burns. Another goal of Delta is to increase off-peak travel, especially on the international front. "Our aircraft are full every summer because that is our peak season. We wanted to utilise this as a means to stimulate business for Delta in the non-peak season," says Burns. Delta hired consultants to help understand its contract with the ACOG - not an uncomplicated process, according to Burns - and to advise on how to make the most of its marketing rights so that everybody "marches in step" and that the business goals are achieved.
'wings and dreams'
The result is Delta's Wings and Dreams campaign - a publicity drive which gives a single "look" to everything which Delta does and which is associated with the Games. The image percolates right through from the large-scale, such as the specially painted aircraft, to the small-scale, such as press releases and invitation cards. Delta has extended this look to its concourses at 13 airports in the USA, including each of its hubs, and is now doing the same at some of its international gateways. The campaign is also designed to match the "look" of the city during the Games. "It's fresh, vibrant and bold," says Burns. "This is no time for subtlety. Frivolous is definitely not in our vocabulary and we know that when a passenger comes on to one of our aircraft, they want to know that we are very conservative - but here was a chance to break the mould for Delta, in the right context."
The business aspect of Delta's programme is paying dividends. "We are already cash positive on our investment internationally. It has been great for our shareholders and for our employees," says Burns.
There is still room for sentiment, however, and Burns is the first to admit that it has been "a lot of fun" bringing the Wings and Dreams campaign to fruition. For tradition's sake, Delta has included a small airport in Louisiana - the airline's original home - in the decorative scheme.
The idea of using an aircraft as a flying billboard came from Delta's public-relations department, during a regular meeting of key personnel. In addition to the 12 dedicated Olympics' programme staff, some 25 people representing each department within Delta meet every six weeks to discuss Olympic issues.
The choice of aircraft was obvious - in 1982, in a gesture now famous in the air-transport world, Delta employees purchased a Boeing 767, christened it the Spirit of Delta, and presented it to the airline. Burns himself was one of the contributors - "I think I own a toilet on that aircraft," he jokes.
As the aircraft was due for refurbishment in 1995, Delta seized the opportunity and had it re-painted in a spectacular Olympic scheme featuring red, blue, magenta and orange stars against a blue background. Employees were invited to a reception in a hangar, during which the doors opened to reveal the surprise new look, and Allen announced that Spirit of Delta was being rededicated to the staff of Delta. "It was a good thing. We had inspirational music and people were really moved. So many people said that they knew this was about the Olympics, but they also felt it was a bold statement about where Delta was going," says Burns.
The original intention had been for just one aircraft to be re-painted, because of the cost involved, but a second opportunity came up earlier this year. "We were a little cautious of getting involved in the torch relay because that is a Coca-Cola event and we did not want to ambush another company's event, but we knew that the flame had to get here from Greece and we finally agreed to get involved. That's how the MD-11 came to be painted also," says Burns. McDonnell Douglas became involved and painted the aircraft in the Olympic colours at its own cost, he adds.
The size of the MD-11, christened the Centennial Spirit, makes it particularly eye-catching. "People, when they see it for the first time, say they cannot believe it is a Delta aircraft because it's so bold and aggressive. It makes you look at it. It's one of the examples of what sponsors can and should do with their product if they want to use it in an appropriate way," says Burns.
In April, the Centennial Spirit's historic 14h flight from Athens to Los Angeles carried the Olympic Flame in a safety lantern mounted in the main cabin. At some 11,270km (6,100nm), it was the longest distance ever travelled by the Flame in an aircraft. Special approvals had to obtained from the US Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration to transport a flame aboard the aircraft. The safety lantern consisted of a self-contained unit, sealed and leak-proof, encased in a fluted, decorative, container. For its journey, it was secured to an interior wall by aluminium brackets designed by Delta mechanics and was monitored continuously by an ACOG representative. Once in Los Angeles, the Flame's overland relay across the USA was begun, with Delta professionals among the 10,000 torchbearers. It will arrive in Atlanta on 19 July.
biggest challenge
As the flame arrives, so will Delta's biggest challenge of all - the managing of people into and out of Hartsfield. Numbers should not be a problem in themselves, says Burns. Delta will offer more seats into and out of Atlanta than any airline has ever flown to an Olympic host city. It will fly more than 94,000 seats daily both into and out of the city, amounting to 4.2 million seats during the Games period - enough to fill the Olympic Stadium almost 50 times. Hartsfield is already the second-busiest airport in the world, after Chicago O'Hare, in terms of flights handled, and Delta knows from its current reservations that it has around 45-50% remaining capacity even on the peak days.
"We know what the peak days are going to be at the airport, and a lot of those people have graciously booked Delta, but we also know we can handle it," says Burns, who adds that it has always been Delta's intention to make it "business as usual" throughout the games. "From a business perspective, Atlanta and Delta are completely capable of holding these Games. We have not raised fares and there are still plenty of seats, so we want people to know that they don't have to stay away from Atlanta from a business point of view," says Burns. Recently, Delta removed special restrictions on tickets booked during the Games period, which had helped assure the availability of seats for business customers.
Where Delta has identified a need is in the "meet and greet" of passengers, especially those from overseas, as they find their way through the airport. Delta is tasking about 400 of its employees with these duties during the peak days. The airline is also providing a welcome centre at one of its hangars for athletes, coaches, media and other people associated directly with the Games.
In addition, Delta is providing some 1,000 employees to the ACOG to help with the general management of the games. Their assignments vary between periods of two and six weeks and all staff will receive their full Delta salaries.
That leaves the question, of course, of what to do when it is all over. Burns is already attempting to find suitable placements for his team, which will be dismantled after the Games. "We are like a miniature marketing team. We have grown a lot and gained a lot of experience - the worst thing would be to squander that experience," says Burns. Delta also has to look ahead to the year 2002, when the Winter Olympic Games will be held in Salt Lake City, Utah - a major Delta hub. The airline has made no decision yet whether it will seek a partnership deal for that event, but it seems possible.
For Burns, there has been enormous personal satisfaction in this project. He is particularly proud of Delta's Olympic Aid for Children programme, in which passengers can contribute spare currency towards helping children in war-torn areas. "I had the business aspects down, but wanted also to speak to the Olympic ideal," says Burns, who waits for the opening ceremonies with nothing short of gold-medal enthusiasm. "It's sweeter because it's home and we are eager to show off this city and the new South. This is about the future," he says.
Source: Flight International
