Delta warns against tariffs amid national security probe into aircraft imports

Responding to a federal probe into the national security impact of imported commercial planes, jet engines, and parts, Delta Air Lines urged the government not to impose new tariffs.

A Delta spokesperson provided Fox News Digital with a document from a law firm that was responding on behalf of the airline to the government’s public comment request on the probe.

The message warned that “without providing time to adjust, any potential tariffs would not only threaten U.S. manufacturing of aircraft, it would also inhibit Delta’s ability to purchase aircraft produced domestically or abroad.” 

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Delta Airlines Airbus plane during take-off at the Polderbaan from Schiphol Airport in Vijfhuizen, Netherlands, on Jan. 1. (Patrick van Katwijk/Getty Images)

“If Commerce were to recommend tariffs under Section 232, the action would also impose an unexpected tax on Delta’s purchases of aircraft contracted years in advance. Delta would likely be forced to cancel existing contracts and reconsider contracts under negotiation,” the document declared.

In 2023 and 2024 the company accepted delivery of 47 Airbus planes made in Canada, Germany or France, the document noted, asserting that if the airline had not been able to accept the planes because of tariffs, it would have needed to nix flights, a move that would have had an impact on about 10 million customers annually.

“A similar impact could be expected going forward if Commerce were to recommend Section 232 tariffs,” the message warned. 

“Imposing new tariffs on aircraft, engines, and parts would thwart Delta’s increasing foothold in highly skilled manufacturing services such as maintenance, repairs, and overhauls of aircraft, engines, and component parts. The new tariffs would also hinder Delta’s ability to purchase aircraft and maintain a modern and efficient fleet that can be competitive in the global airline industry and reliably serve its U.S. consumers,” the document declared.

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A Delta Air Lines Boeing 767 plane bound for New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport takes off from the Belgian capital’s Zaventem airport in Brussels on April 5. (Omar Havana/Getty Images)

In a statement to Fox News Digital, White House spokesman Kush Desai said, “The Trump administration is committed to an America First agenda to safeguard our country’s national and economic security. Towards that end, the Commerce Department is currently pursuing a Section 232 investigation into imports of jet engines and parts. Any possible decisions based on the results of that lengthy investigation will be announced by President Trump himself,” 

The Commerce Department did not return Fox News Digital’s comment request by the time of publication. 

The notice about request for public comment on the probe noted that, “On May 1, 2025, the Secretary of Commerce initiated an investigation under Section 232 (19 U.S.C. 1862) to determine the effects on national security of imports of commercial aircraft and jet engines, and parts for commercial aircraft and jet engines.”

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President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., on June 5. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

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Delta CEO Ed Bastian indicated during an earnings call in April that the company will defer accepting plane deliveries that would involve a tariff.