Delta Airlines on Monday flew a large shipment of baby formula from London to Logan International Airport as the US continues to grapple with a formula shortage, according to the airline.
“The first flight was today, June 20,” said Delta spokesperson Catherine Morrow via email Monday. A spokesperson for Massport, which runs Logan, referred questions to Delta.
In a statement released June 10, the White House said the Biden administration had arranged the sixth Operation Fly Formula flight to US, with Delta transporting Kendamil formula free of charge from London to Logan in Boston and Detroit Metro Airport between June 20 and June 24.
Advertisement
On Monday, WBZ-TV reported that the first Delta flight had landed at Logan just before noon.
In its June 10 statement, the White House said the Operation Fly Formula flights that Delta donated will contain more than 212,000 pounds, or roughly 3.2 million 8-ounce bottle equivalents, of Kendamil infant formula.
The formula, the White House said, will be available for purchase at select US retailers nationwide, and online.
The Biden administration said that on June 9, Operation Fly Formula flights landed in Texas with 1.6 million bottle equivalents of Nestlé NAN SupremePro Stage 1 infant formula, and that the first shipment of 3.7 million bottle equivalents of Kendamil infant formula landed in Virginia that day aboard a donated United Airlines flight.
“In addition, the Biden Administration has taken a number of other important actions to ensure there is enough safe infant formula for families, including invoking the Defense Production Act, entering into a consent agreement between the FDA to reopen Abbott Nutrition’s Sturgis facility, and issuing FDA guidance so that major formula manufacturers can safely import formula that is not currently being produced for the U.S. market,” the White House said June 10.
Advertisement
That same day, Delta released a statement touting its participation in the Operation Fly Formula initiative.
“Delivering baby formula to those who need it most as part of Operation Fly Formula is one way we can live out a deeply ingrained core value at Delta: a commitment to serving the health and well-being of our communities,” said Rob Walpole, Vice President of Delta Cargo, in the company’s statement.
This is a breaking news story that will be updated when more information becomes available.
Travis Andersen can be reached at travis.andersen@globe.com.