Delta/Northwest are ‘big on Africa’

WITH THE merger/takeover scene in the US airline industry the news of the moment, a question being asked locally is: What does the merger of Delta/Northwest Airline mean from an SA cargo perspective? Not much for the next eight months or so, according to Anne Sanders, MD of GSAfrica – agents for Delta (and now also Northwest) in SA. It’s going to take that long for the airlines’ management to sort out all the details of the merger, she told FTW. “Although it immediately offers a lot more US destinations for us.” But she’s confident about the future Africa connections for the merged airlines. On an international expansion trail, the two carriers “are going big into Africa,” said Sanders. She also announced that Delta – which is flying the SA route, and has been GSAfrica’s principal since the start of the GSA contract – is bringing on a Cape Town-New York (via Dakar) flight on June 4. “The carrier will be flying a Boeing 767 (ER) on the flight,” said Sanders, “leaving from Cape Town on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.” It will supply GSAfrica with 11-tons of cargo capacity per flight. “We’re very happy with the present set-up,” Sanders added, “with Delta flying Atlanta- Johannesburg flights with a 9 8% passenger load factor – and with 80% of the passengers visiting Americans.”