American Delta Air Lines has announced plans to up-gauge its aircraft on the Lagos to Atlanta route over the Christmas and New Year period operating an Airbus A350-900 to support additional holiday traffic.
According to the airline, effective December 16, 2023 until January 14, 2024 Nigerian customers will have the opportunity to experience the A350-900 offering an additional 166 daily seats between the two countries.
The airline assured that its customers flying from Nigeria to the US will continue to enjoy the opportunity to fly on full-flat Delta One beds, Delta Premium Select, as well as Delta Comfort+ and Main Cabin service.
The mega carrier which marked its sixteenth anniversary since the start of its daily nonstop service between Lagos Murtala Muhammed International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, remains the only US carrier to operate nonstop service between Nigeria and Atlanta coffering hundreds of onward connecting opportunities via Delta’s leading US gateway.
Commenting on the development, Delta’s Regional sales manager for Africa, Jimmy Eichelgruen, remarked “Delta’s flight between Lagos and Atlanta has gone from strength to strength, and we have continued to see strong demand for our service to popular US destinations including to Houston, Washington, Los Angeles, Dallas and New York. Traffic between the United States and Africa remains a growing sector in aviation.
“We have maintained a strong footprint between the African continent and the US and we currently operate service from Nigeria, South Africa, Senegal and Ghana.”
Equally, the airline has spent years prototyping and testing paper cups capable of withstanding hot, cold and alcoholic drinks while meeting strict environmental regulations.
The paper cups has since December 5, 2023 taken to the skies , for final testing on several transcontinental domestic and select additional flights.
According to the airline, once approved and rolled out across the Delta network, paper cups will help eliminate nearly seven million pounds the weight of 1,300 pickup trucks – of single-use plastics on board annually and bring Delta one step closer to minimising single-use plastics on board by 2025.
The airline said it has already removed more than 4.9 million pounds of single use plastics annually since 2022 on its journey to deliver a more sustainable travel experience.
Cups that airlines use on board need to make sure hot drinks stay hot and cold drinks stay cold while holding up to the dissolving properties of alcohol.
Additionally, the cups need to be stackable within the galley carts already in use on aircraft, and be able to separate easily so flight attendants can efficiently serve our customers.
READ ALSO FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
