NWAC Northwest Airlines (MM)

NWA Cargo Delivers Beaujolais Nouveau Charter Flights Ensure On-time Delivery of Prized Wine to Japan AMSTERDAM, Netherlands, Nov. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Two Northwest Airlines (NASDAQ:NWAC) Boeing 747 freighters departed Amsterdam for Japan today with 142,000 bottles and 3,600 15-liter barrels of this year's prized Beaujolais Nouveau wine. Combined with a third freighter charter flight and additional shipments on Northwest's scheduled passenger flights, NWA Cargo will carry more than 450,000 kilograms (992,000 pounds) of Beaujolais Nouveau for its customers in time for the annual worldwide distribution of the much-anticipated wine. Upon arrival, the fruity red wine, made from hand-picked grapes in the Beaujolais region of France and trucked to Amsterdam, will be rushed to stores, restaurants and bars throughout Japan. By tradition, Beaujolais Nouveau cannot be sold until midnight on the third Thursday in November -- Nov. 18 this year -- giving Japanese wine drinkers one of the first opportunities in the world to uncork and sample this year's vintage. The third Northwest Boeing 747 freighter will leave Amsterdam for Tokyo on Nov. 11. The wine also is being shipped on scheduled passenger flights from London-Gatwick and Paris to various Asian and U.S. markets. "Delivering Beaujolais Nouveau requires reliability, speed and teamwork, and once again this year we have earned the trust of leading freight forwarders to deliver this timely and renowned cargo," said Jim Friedel, president of NWA Cargo, a subsidiary of Northwest Airlines. Beaujolais Nouveau is made through a process called whole berry fermentation. This technique preserves the fresh, fruity quality of the wine without extracting the bitter tannins from the grape skins. As a result of the speedy fermentation, the wine is ready to drink right away. NWA Cargo is the largest cargo carrier among U.S. combination passenger and cargo airlines. NWA Cargo's fleet of 12 dedicated Boeing 747 freighter aircraft fly from key cities throughout United States and Asia and connect at the carrier's cargo hub in Anchorage, Alaska, facilitating the quick transfer of cargo between large cities on both sides of the Pacific. NWA Cargo also transports freight aboard the passenger fleet of Northwest Airlines to more than 250 cities worldwide. For more information about NWA Cargo, please visit the NWA Cargo Web site at http://www.nwacargo.com/ . DATASOURCE: Northwest Airlines CONTACT: Northwest Airlines Media Relations, +1-612-726-2331 Web site: http://www.nwacargo.com/ http://www.nwa.com/

Copyright