American said it will operate about 1,200 charter flights to Cuba this year, which is up 9 percent from those in 2014.
Advertisement
The agreement, reached late December 16, means that charter operations can continue between the United States and Cuba and scheduled services can begin, although no timeline was given.
The official return on Tuesday of baseball defectors earning millions in the major leagues was a landmark in the new relationship between Cuba and the United States and a dramatic manifestation of Cuba’s shifting attitude toward the hundreds of players who have abandoned the country that trained them.
American chairman and CEO Doug Parker issued a statement welcoming the agreement.
Even though commercial service will be allowed, Kass said Americans are still barred from traveling to Cuba purely as tourists under USA law. “ASTA estimates at least 2 million additional Americans could visit Cuba by 2017 if Congress votes for a full lifting of travel restrictions before the end of this year”.
Dallas-based Southwest Airlines said it’s “excited about the possibility of providing low-fare, high-quality service to Cuba”, but it’s time frame is probably farther out.
Speaking at a news conference in Havana, Cuba’s Director of US Affairs Josefina Vidal told reporters that the two countries were close to reaching a preliminary agreement. “Cuba is the ideal addition to the JetBlue network”.
Among president Barack Obama’s regulatory changes this year was one permitting such travel to Cuba without specific Treasury Department permission.
The US reopened its embassy in Havana in August after a 54-year absence. The State Department statement did not explain how the countries envisioned the continuation of charter service alongside regularly scheduled flights.
The US also announced the start of commercial flights between the two countries.
An American Airlines airplane prepares to land at the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana on September 19.
The move allows USA airlines to sell tickets to Cuba on their websites.
The new bilateral is therefore expected to be phased in slowly.
“I haven’t seen more commerce, really”. Cuban aviation authorities already liaise with FAA on ATC issues and are recognized as being expert and efficient.
“We’ll work so that one day we can say this is just one of many anniversaries”.
The deal reached Wednesday night after three days of talks in Washington opens the way for US airlines to negotiate with Cuba’s government for 20 routes a day to Havana and 10 to each of Cuba’s other nine major airports, the State Department said.
Some details still need to be worked out and USA planes won’t be landing in Cuba immediately.
Advertisement
Cuba also has been allowing some stars to legally play in countries such as Japan and Mexico during the off-season.
