Delta celebrates a decade of flying to Africa
Delta Air Lines is celebrating a decade of flying to Africa, with its first flight having landed in Johannesburg on 5 December 2006, from Atlanta via Dakar, Senegal. A week later, the Accra, Ghana service was started and the Lagos, Nigeria service launched a year later. Over the past 10 years, the airline has welcomed 4.2 million customers on board its services to the United States - almost as many as the 4.4 million people who live in the Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan area.
Delta Johannesburg inaugural flight
“Delta has invested billions of dollars to enhance the service we offer our customers in Africa, and across the globe, since our inaugural flights here,” said Jimmy Eichelgruen, Delta’s sales director for Africa, India, and the Middle East. “We have added fully flat-bed seats, on-demand entertainment, and Wi-Fi to every flight across the Atlantic. Travellers will also now find regional cuisine and dedicated airport facilities but one thing that hasn’t changed is our commitment to offering the same levels of customer service that have made us the favourite US airline serving this continent.”
Some of Delta’s other achievements in Africa over the past 10 years include:
• 1.6 million passengers flown between Johannesburg and North America
• 22,000 flights operated between Africa and the United States
• 95% of North America being accessible via one-stop connections in Atlanta and New York-JFK
• 9 million meals served on board
• Partnerships with leading community organisations, such as Breast Care International in Ghana and the Amy Biehl Foundation in South Africa
• Being the only carrier to offer Wi-Fi on every flight
Today, Delta flies nonstop to four points in Africa - Accra, Ghana; Dakar, Senegal; Johannesburg, South Africa, and Lagos, Nigeria. It also has a reservations/ticketing and sales office in Cape Town and in a number of additional markets, including Kenya and Uganda.
