Leading US carrier Delta has said that the demand for air cargo is driving the return of its passenger services from the US to Germany and the UK for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic closed borders.

Beginning 21 May, flights to Frankfurt and London will operate three times weekly from Atlanta and Detroit, respectively, and these flights will also be available for customer travel.

Cargo will be transported between Los Angeles and Frankfurt, via Atlanta, and between Chicago and London, via Detroit, increasing the shipping opportunities for cargo customers.

The Frankfurt service will be operated using an Airbus A330-300 aircraft with 31 tons of cargo capacity, while a Boeing 767-300 will fly to Heathrow with 26 tons of cargo capacity.

Delta is also launching scheduled cargo-only flights between New York-JFK and Mumbai, India, this month, subject to foreign government approval.

The airline continues to operate cargo-only services from Asia to the US.

Delta Cargo vice president, Shawn Cole, said: “Keeping global supply chains open is more important now than ever and these new services will enable suppliers to meet the needs of their customers.

“We’re receiving daily requests for shipments of medical supplies as well as goods that keep businesses in operation. By also opening these services to passengers, we can facilitate essential travel between the UK, Europe and United States.”

Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Delta has also implemented a number of health and safety measures.

These include:

• Sanitising the aircraft before every flight
• Using state-of-the-art air circulation systems with HEPA filters that extract more than 99.999 per cent of viruses
• Capping capacity throughout the aircraft to ensure onboard customer spacing
• Adjusting the boarding process to encourage more space for safer travel by boarding all flights from back-to-front – reducing the instances of customers needing to pass by one another
• Providing supplies directly to customers when available, including hand sanitisers
• Requiring employees and customers to wear a face mask or appropriate covering when travelling

Delta Transatlantic vice president Roberto Ioriatti said: “The safety of our customers is always our number one priority, and their wellbeing is the reason we have implemented these wide-ranging measures.

“The advent of Covid-19 is changing the way we fly and that’s why our focus on cleanliness will remain in place always. We hope that these efforts will give our customers greater peace of mind when they step on board.”

Furthermore, the consolidation of operations at Frankfurt Airport means Delta’s flights are temporarily moving from Terminal 2 to Terminal 1.

At London Heathrow, Delta has moved from Terminal 3 to Terminal 2.

Visit deltacargo.com/cargo for more information.