Delta announced in January it would leave its birthplace and replace its service with the Delta subsidiary Atlantic Southeast Airlines.
Gone will be Delta's full-size jets. ASA has replaced them with a regional jet fleet and increased the number of daily flights at Monroe Regional from six to seven.
The last Delta MD-88 jet departs from Monroe regional at 5:55 p.m. Saturday.
"Our minds and hearts will always be in Monroe," said Caroll Zupancic, a regional manager for Delta. "But we're passing the torch to our brothers and sisters at ASA."
Delta was founded in Monroe by five Ouachita Parish investors in 1929 and continued to hold its annual stockholders meeting in Monroe until 1996.
But Delta, now based in Atlanta, said it could not afford to continue to service Monroe with small passenger loads on its full size jets, so it installed ASA with its 50-passenger jets.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/4/196471