Delta, one of the major airlines of the United States, is adding a Cape Town stop to their popular Atlanta-Johannesburg flight route.
Speaking at a virtual town hall meeting, Delta president Glen Hauenstein told reporters of plans to add a Cape Town stop to their pre-existing Atlanta-Johannesburg ultra long-haul flights, using A350-900s. Long-haul flights such as this one were previously flown with 777-200LRs, which Delta plans to retire at the end of the year.
Delta will thus continue Atlanta-Johannesburg flights with A350-900s by adding a stop in Cape Town (CPT), said Hauenstein. The new routing will be Atlanta – Johannesburg – Cape Town – Atlanta.
EXCLUSIVE: Delta will add Cape Town service to keep Johannesburg flights going with the Airbus A350 https://t.co/yPMA9HHnmT
— Edward Russell (@e_russell) May 20, 2020
The Atlanta-Johannesburg flight covers 8,439 miles (13 58km), and is the only US carrier offering this flight. Concerns over whether the A350 could manage the non-stop flight from Atlanta to Johannesburg are eased with the addition of the Cape Town leg, as the plane will be able to refuel before returning to the US.
The addition of tourist-popular Cape Town to its route is a great achievement, allowing travellers to enjoy the Mother City. However, according to The Points Guy, Delta needs special permission from the government to sell tickets solely on the domestic South African leg of the route.
All ultra long-haul flights flown with 777-200LR have been suspended amid the coronavirus pandemic. There is no timeline at present for when the flights will resume.
Source: The Points Guy
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