Ildi Sundheim and Sharon Brown posed for a photo in front of a Big Ben mural put up by Delta Air Lines as it restarted direct flights between Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and London’s Heathrow Airport on Monday. The women were among the first passengers to arrive for the flight. (Glen Stubbe | Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Delta Air Lines on Monday resumed daily nonstop service to London, the latest step in the revival of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to pre-pandemic operational levels.

Delta's restart of regular service to London's Heathrow Airport follows the return of its daily nonstop to Paris and twice daily nonstops to Amsterdam from MSP.

Sharon Brown, who lives near Willmar, said she was thankful to be traveling nonstop for her first visit in many years to London. "I'm excited to go nonstop," she said. "It's so much easier. Less hassle, I'd say."

As travel demand rebounds, more service to Europe is in the works before summer, according to MSP officials. KLM is currently flying three times a week to Amsterdam. Icelandair is starting service later this month to Reykjavik five times a week.

Next month, Delta will start daily nonstops to Reykjavik as well. Air France plans four flights a week to Paris starting next month. Condor, starting in May, will fly three times weekly to Frankfurt.

MSP is the second-largest hub for Atlanta-based Delta. The airline and its regional affiliates account for seven of 10 flights at the airport.

Mary Loeffelholz, vice president for MSP customer service for Delta, said in February that the carrier was unlikely to reach 100% of its pre-pandemic operation until next year.

The sign at Gate G6 Monday as Delta Air Lines restarted direct flights between Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and London’s Heathrow. (Glen Stubbe | Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

One key marker still ahead: the return of daily service at MSP to Asia. Before the pandemic, Delta operated daily nonstops to Tokyo and Seoul. Executives at the airport and Delta explored nonstops to China at times in the past decade.

Northwest Airlines, which Delta acquired in 2008, started providing direct service between MSP and London in the 1980s. Passenger demand from the MSP market to London is about 42,000 passengers per year.

Delta's MSP-Heathrow flight also is a key connection for people in the western United States and Canada, bringing tens of thousands of passengers through MSP annually, according to airport executives.

Delta will serve the route with a mix of the Airbus A330-200 aircraft as well as the Boeing 767-400 aircraft. The flights will depart from MSP daily at 5:55 p.m.