Delta will stop flying to 3 US cities and cut 7 routes indefinitely as carriers continue to pull out of small markets — see the full list

• Delta Air Lines is exiting three markets to small cities in Wyoming, Colorado, and Nebraska, citing low demand.
• The airline is also slashing service to four other airports, though will still fly to them from alternate hubs.

Delta Air Lines is making changes to its domestic network and three small cities in the US are losing service from the carrier indefinitely, with seven routes overall getting cut.

Atlanta-based Delta is dropping service to cities in several states across the US, including Wyoming, Wisconsin, Montana, Nebraska, Michigan, Colorado, and Indiana, the airline later confirmed to Insider and The Points Guy first reported.

Three cities will lose their service entirely, including Lincoln, Nebraska, and Grand Junction, Colorado, both of which will end January 10, and Cody, Wyoming, where seasonal service was suspended in October 2021 and will not return.

"Due to ongoing travel demand impact from the pandemic, we have made the difficult decision to suspend Delta Connection service to these markets," a Delta spokesperson told Insider in an email statement. "We are working to re-accommodate customers with alternate plans or offer refunds as quickly as possible. We are grateful to all who supported this service throughout the years."

Most of the markets are small towns, which are becoming a common casualty of network adjustments due to low demand and high costs. According to Delta, the four cities that are seeing reduced service will still be served via other Delta hubs beginning January 10. Take a look at the routes and cities that Delta will cut indefinitely:

• Between Detroit, Michigan, and La Crosse, Wisconsin: Delta is dropping its service from Detroit to La Crosse, though it will still serve the airport from Minneapolis, and American offers flights from Chicago.
• Between Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Great Falls, Montana: Delta is cutting its service from Minneapolis to Great Falls, though it will still serve the airport from Salt Lake City. Meanwhile, Alaska offers flights from Seattle, United operates from Denver, and Allegiant flies from Las Vegas and Phoenix-Mesa.
• Between Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Lincoln, Nebraska: Delta is ending its service from Minneapolis to Lincoln indefinitely, cutting the only route Delta operated to the city. However, United still offers flights from Denver and Chicago.
• Between Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Marquette County, Michigan: Delta is dropping its service from Minneapolis to Marquette County, though it will still offer flights from Detroit, and American flies from Chicago.
• Between Salt Lake City, Utah, and Cody, Wyoming: Delta is cutting its service from Salt Lake City to Cody indefinitely, ending flights to one of the gateways to Yellowstone National Park. However, United still offers flights from Denver.
• Between Salt Lake City, Utah, and Grand Junction, Colorado: Delta is dropping its service from Salt Lake City to Cody, exiting the market entirely. However, the airport still had a number of route options, including United and Frontier from Denver, Allegiant from Phoenix-Mesa, Las Vegas, and Santa Ana, California, and American from Dallas/Fort Worth, Phoenix Sky Harbor, and Los Angeles.
• Between Salt Lake City, Utah, and Indianapolis, Indiana: Delta is dropping its service from Salt Lake City to Indianapolis, though it will still offer flights to the Indiana city from Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, New York-JFK, New York-La Guardia, and Minneapolis. The airport is also served by nine other US carriers, like Southwest, Spirit, and Frontier.

Delta is not the only carrier exiting small markets. In early November, United Airlines pulled out of 11 cities indefinitely, leaving some markets with just one commercial operator. The airline cited unsustainability for the long term as a reason for its exit.

According to Henry Harteveldt, president and travel industry analyst of Atmosphere Research Group, these small cities are expensive to operate to and low demand has made it difficult to be profitable. However, he emphasized that the pandemic has impacted airlines' decisions and companies do not have a moral obligation to serve small markets.

"In the wake of the most financially brutal 18 months that the global airline industry has experienced due to the COVID pandemic, airlines are going to seek out markets that they believe will give them an advantage, but if a city isn't profitable, they will cut it," Harteveldt told Insider in November.

Meanwhile, American has also cut service to small cities, like New Haven, Connecticut, in September, according to the Hartford Courant. Avelo Airlines is the only commercial operator out of the city, having launched operations in November.