Defined Benefit (Pension) · DOL Form 5500 · 2024
Delta Air Lines, Inc. Pension Plan
Data updated 2026-08-11
- $4.5B
- Total assets
- 1,352
- Participants
- 100th
- Percentile by assets
- $3.3M
- Avg per participant
Official DOL plan name: Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees · Sponsored by Delta Air Lines, Inc. · Georgia · Transportation & Warehousing
$4.5B in assets, 1,352 participants
Delta Air Lines, Inc.'s Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees reported $4.5B in total assets and 1,352 participants in its 2024 DOL Form 5500 filing, ranking in the 100th percentile by assets among filed plans. Figures are as reported by the plan sponsor to the Department of Labor, not audited or endorsed by PlainRetire.
- 100th percentile by assets (of 123,622 plans)
- #3,276 in Transportation & Warehousing (3,299 peers)
Where Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees sits by assets
Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees sits among the largest 1% of all filed plans, $4.5B for 1,352 participants (~$3.3M/participant), down 0.3% in 2024.
- $4.5B
- total plan assets (2024 EOY)
- 1,352
- covered participants
- 100th
- percentile by assets (of 123,622 plans)
- $3.3M
- avg assets per participant
The plan reported a net loss of $15M for the year, a single-year figure driven by markets and benefit payments, not a measure of plan health.
What changed between DOL Form 5500 filings
plan year 2023 → plan year 2024
- Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees reported net income fell from $262M in the plan year 2023 filing to -$15M in the plan year 2024 filing.
- Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees reported participants fell from 1,483 in the plan year 2023 filing to 1,352 in the plan year 2024 filing.
- Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees end-of-year assets fell from $4.5B in the plan year 2023 filing to $4.5B in the plan year 2024 filing.
Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees vs the 2024 asset distribution
By assets, Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees outranks nearly all the 123,622 plans that filed a Form 5500 for the 2024 plan year, and holds roughly 45x the national average plan size of $100M (721 average participants).
Scale-class filing particulars (2024)
| Total Assets (Beginning of Year) | $4.5B |
|---|---|
| Net Assets (End of Year) | $4.5B |
| Net Income | -$15M |
| Employer EIN | 580218548 |
| Plan Effective Date | 1956-04-01 |
| Filing Status | FILING RECEIVED |
Sponsor Plan History (Delta Air Lines, Inc.)
| Year | Plans | Participants | Total Assets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 11 | 112,289 | $40.2B |
| 2023 | 12 | 136,516 | $46.0B |
| 2024 | 12 | 145,368 | $51.4B |
Nearby Defined Benefit (Pension) Plans in Georgia
Peer Defined Benefit (Pension) plans, same state, same plan type, ranked by total assets.
Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees vs. nearby Defined Benefit (Pension) plans in Georgia, assets vs. participants
- UPS Retirement Plan $21.2B · 43,465
- The Southern Company Pension Plan $15.3B · 25,843
- UPS/Ibt Full-Time Employee Pension Plan $12.2B · 69,627
- UPS Pension Plan $9.3B · 157,587
- Delta Retirement Plan $7.3B · 15,222
Similar-Sized Defined Benefit (Pension) Plans Nationally
Defined Benefit (Pension) plans in other states closest to Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees by total assets, not by location.
- International Painters and Allied Trades Industry Pension Plan (MD) $4.5B · 45,029
- International Brotherhood of Teamsters Union Local 710 Pension Fund (IL) $4.5B · 8,163
- Usaa Pension Plan (TX) $4.6B · 31,427
- Building Service 32bj Pension Fund (NY) $4.6B · 53,357
Frequently Asked Questions
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Ways to act on Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees's numbers.
- By total assets, Northwest Airlines Pension Plan for Pilot Employees ranks among the largest 1% of all filed plans. See the largest plans
- Compare it side-by-side against 3 similar Defined Benefit (Pension) plans in Georgia. Compare plans
- Delta Air Lines, Inc.'s sponsor-wide assets have grown 27.8% since 2022 across 3 plan years on file. More Transportation & Warehousing plans