With the northern winter just around the corner, the US traveller’s desire to escape the cold is the Aussie traveller’s gain – especially for skiers.

Come December 4, Delta Air Lines launches a seasonal route between Los Angeles and Brisbane, flying three times a week. Delta, the world’s largest airline by revenue, also flies year-round into Sydney.

“With this addition of Brisbane, Delta’s upcoming winter schedule will offer our customers up to 17 weekly flights between the US and Australia,” says Delta executive Joe Esposito.

Delta joins American and United as major US carriers flying into Brisbane. Air Canada also connects the Queensland capital to North America.

In more good news for snow seekers, Delta is running daily flights from LA to Bozeman in the Montana Rockies, as well as the ski resort of Vail in Colorado, between December 21 and March 30.

It’s also introducing a new Saturday service from LA to Sun Valley in Idaho on top of existing daily flights to Jackson Hole (Wyoming) and a year-round Aspen (Colorado) service.

When Delta announced its Brisbane service, it had a partnership with Rex Airlines. Rex is in voluntary administration, but Brisbane still gives inbound Americans a handy access point for the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Great Barrier Reef.

Meanwhile, Delta has just opened a new lounge at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Delta One is the best cabin on the airline’s long-haul and transcontinental flights, while Delta First Class is its purely domestic pointy end.