Amid the gloom prevailing following the mass shooting at a nightclub in Orlando, some positive news flowed in for U.S. airlines as the carriers will soon be operating commercial flights to Cuba. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has authorized six U.S.-based carriers to operate scheduled flights to nine second-tier Cuban cities, thereby taking a step toward restoration of diplomatic ties with the island nation after more than 50 years.
Currently, many U.S. carriers offer charter service to Cuba. Following the DOT approval, the carriers can start operating commercial flights to the island this fall itself.
A Long-Standing Issue
Diplomatic ties between the countries were severed by the U.S. in 1961 after Fidel Castro overthrew the Cuban government to set up a socialist state and in the process started to establish strong relations with the erstwhile Soviet Union. In late 2014, President Obama called for the restoration of diplomatic ties with Cuba.
Following a series of talks, a non-legally binding arrangement aimed at restoration of scheduled flights between the nations was inked in February this year. Subsequently, the U.S. DOT received a plethora of applications from U.S. carriers seeking permission to operate commercial flights to Cuba, a favorite tourist spot for Americans prior to the embargo.
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The Current Scenario
According to Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, the selected U.S. carriers will operate commercial flights from the cities of Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Chicago, Philadelphia and Minneapolis/St. Paul. The nine Cuban cities which will be connected to the U.S. via the commercial flights are Camagüey, Cayo Coco, Cayo Largo, Cienfuegos, Holguín, Manzanillo, Matanzas, Santa Clara and Santiago de Cuba.
The U.S. DOT has allowed airline heavyweights like American Airlines Group AAL, Southwest Airlines Co. LUV and JetBlue Airways Corp. JBLU to launch commercial flights to Cuba. The other airlines that have secured a go-ahead for the same are Frontier Airlines, Silver Airways and Sun Country Airlines.
Silver Airways was the only carrier to win permission to fly to all of the nine Cuban destinations. Following the approval, American Airlines will be able to operate two daily flights between Miami and Holguin, Santa Clara and Varadero (a resort town in Matanzas) apart from a single daily flight between Miami and Camaguey and Cienfuegos. The flights are expected to be operational from September this year. The Dallas-based Southwest Airlines will apparently operate flights between Fort Lauderdale, FL, and two Cuban cities.