Delta announced Thursday that it had hired Deloitte & Touche, subject to shareholder approval in April, as its outside accountant.

"We value greatly the professional services provided by Arthur Andersen over the years and appreciate the excellent work provided by their Delta team," said Delta, citing no specific reason for switching to D&T.

Three of Andersen's top clients have already jumped ship. Most notable, Enron Corp. fired Andersen in January as the Enron debacle began to unravel. Pharamaceutical firm Merck & Co., Andersen's largest client, announced its switch to PricewaterhouseCoopers earlier this month. And mortgage provider Freddie Mac announced on Wednesday that it, too, had hired PwC as its outside accountant, but will retain Andersen for consulting services.

Other large clients such as Costco International, United Health Group and Walgreen Co. have opted to remain with Andersen for now, while others such as Georgia Pacific and International Paper are in the process of reviewing the firm as their auditor.

Delta paid Andersen $1.9 million for accounting services and $3.97 million for other services in 2000, according to Delta's proxy statement.

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