Four years into Delta–LATAM: what the partnership means for lounge access in South America
The joint venture has carried 17.4 million passengers on 28 routes, with Brazil one of its fastest-growing markets. Eligible SkyMiles and LATAM Pass members can use each other's lounges. Here's what that covers.
Delta and LATAM have marked four years of their joint venture. Between October 2022 and July 2026, the two airlines flew 83,000 flights together, offered 20.8 million seats and carried 17.4 million passengers, according to Delta's Oct. 5 announcement. The joint network now has 28 routes, and combined capacity in 2026 is about 31% higher than in 2023.
Over the same period the operation reached 79.1 billion available seat miles. The venture covers the United States and Canada on one side and Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay on the other.
Reciprocal lounge access#
The part that matters most to lounge-goers is that the two loyalty programs recognize each other. Eligible SkyMiles and LATAM Pass members get lounges on both networks. On the U.S. side that's nearly 60 Delta Sky Clubs. In South America and Miami it includes LATAM's lounges:
Delta says entry depends on your cabin, your elite status and which program you belong to. The release doesn't give the exact thresholds. Our record for the Miami LATAM lounge is more specific: it lists SkyMiles Diamond, Platinum and Gold Medallion members as eligible when flying LATAM, alongside LATAM Premium Business passengers and LATAM Pass Black members. I'd treat that as a guide and check with the airline before counting on a visit.
LATAM isn't a SkyTeam member, so this access comes from the joint venture's own agreement rather than alliance rules. That also means LATAM status alone won't open a Sky Club on a non-partner SkyTeam flight.
Delta One Lounges too#
Delta's own lounge page lists LATAM among the partner airlines whose premium-cabin passengers can use its Delta One Lounges. That puts LATAM Premium Business travelers in line for the JFK Delta One Lounge in Terminal 4, where LATAM and Delta now share a terminal, and for the lounges in Los Angeles, Boston and Seattle. The JFK lounge has eight showers, a terrace with airfield views and a table-service brasserie. Note that Delta says Basic Business fares lose Delta One Lounge access for travel from Jan. 19, 2027.
Brazil leads the growth#
Brazil's combined capacity is up nearly 33% in 2026 compared with 2023. Routes such as São Paulo–Los Angeles and Rio de Janeiro–JFK have been part of that growth, along with Bogotá–Orlando, Guayaquil–New York, Buenos Aires–Miami, Atlanta–Cartagena and Lima–Salt Lake City. At São Paulo-Guarulhos, Santiago and JFK, the two airlines now share terminals, which makes connections simpler, and they've linked their baggage-tracking systems.
Ecuador had the fastest growth, up 64%, and Peru was up 25%. Colombia and Chile grew about 10% each. Argentina joined the joint venture in 2025, and combined capacity there is up nearly 47% in 2026 compared with 2025. The partners also extended status benefits like priority check-in, boarding, seat selection and baggage perks across both programs.
"The increase in capacity, together with the expansion of our network and the benefits available to our customers, demonstrates the value of working together," said Alex Antilla, Delta's vice president for Latin America and the Caribbean, in the release.
For U.S.-based SkyMiles members, the practical upshot is that a LATAM-operated flight to South America now earns SkyMiles and, at the right tier, opens LATAM's lounges, while LATAM Pass members connecting through Atlanta, JFK or Los Angeles get Sky Club access on the same terms their status gives them at home.
Beyond flying#
The two airlines also signed a separate deal this year between Delta TechOps and LATAM Airlines Brasil for Airbus A320 component maintenance and repair, using LATAM's maintenance base in São Carlos, in São Paulo state. LATAM's chief commercial officer, Ramiro Alfonsin, said the share of passengers who would recommend flying the two airlines has risen 50% since the venture launched.
Worth knowing#
By our users' scores, the best-rated lounges in this network are LATAM's Miami and Bogotá lounges, both at 4.7. The Guarulhos international lounge is close behind at 4.6, and it's the one most U.S.-bound connecting passengers will see. It sits on the Terminal 3 mezzanine after passport control, opens around the clock and has eight showers and a full bar. If you're connecting through São Paulo toward the U.S., it's worth leaving time to use it.
Elsewhere in the network, our records show Lima with six showers and a full bar (rated 4.3), Bogotá with two showers and a full bar (4.7), and Buenos Aires-Ezeiza with two showers (4.5), which also takes DragonPass. The Miami lounge sits in Concourse J opposite gates J4 to J6; it isn't a Priority Pass lounge, but LATAM sells a day pass there for about $60.
Santiago's LATAM VIP Lounge is the largest, with 10 showers and a cocktail bar in Terminal 2; its Premium zone is open 24 hours. See our LATAM and Delta pages for the full lounge lists.
Related reading#
Cite this article
Patrick Karsh. “Four years into Delta–LATAM: what the partnership means for lounge access in South America.” Lounge Frog. Published 2026-10-06. Updated 2026-10-14. https://www.loungefrog.com/news/delta-latam-four-years-lounge-access
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