The U.S. airline carrier Delta has announced it will launch direct flights between Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport via Dakar, Senegal, beginning June 2, 2009.

The four-times-weekly flight, which will be the only service to the United States from Kenya operated by a U.S. carrier, will offer passengers connections via Delta's Atlanta hub to around 150 destinations in the United States, including Washington, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle, as well as destinations in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The flight will improve connections between the African nations of Senegal and Kenya by providing passengers with the option of traveling to Dakar.

In a Delta press release, Bobby Bryan, Delta's commercial manager for West and East Africa, said: "The new direct service will offer many important travel options for business and leisure travelers, thanks to the convenience of Delta's connections via Atlanta and will also serve to increase commercial ties between Kenya and the United States by providing a convenient travel option for the thousands of American tourists wanting to discover the beauty of Kenya each year, helping to boost the country's growing economy. Furthermore, this service will be the only air service operated from Kenya to the United States, and for freight forwarders and cargo shippers, the route will expedite shipments of goods throughout the United States."

Delta will operate the new flights between Nairobi and Atlanta with Boeing 767-300ER aircraft having up to 217 seats: 36 seats in Delta's business-class service and 181 in economy class.

In the press release, Delta also unveiled plans to expand its service in Africa in 2009. Other suggested routes include Malabo to Atlanta via Cape Verde (once weekly), Lagos to New York-JFK (five times weekly), Abuja to Atlanta via Cape Verde (twice weekly), Luanda to Atlanta via Cape Verde (twice weekly) and Monrovia to Atlanta via Cape Verde (once weekly).

Delta has also announced plans to replace its current route of Johannesburg-Dakar-Atlanta with a nonstop service between Johannesburg and Atlanta using its new Boeing 777-200LR aircraft. By summer 2009, Delta will operate from 12 cities in 10 African countries, the release notes.