Foxx said. “U.S. carriers have requested almost 60 flights per day to Havana, so here at the Department we’re working to analyze the airline proposals, and we plan to announce those routes later this summer“. “Today we are delivering on his promise”, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said.
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Cuba still hasn’t officially approved the new flights, either, but such approval considered so likely that USA airlines plan to start selling tickets in the next few days, the AP said.
Friday, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced it had cleared six American carriers to begin daily scheduled flights to nine destinations on the Caribbean island nation as early as this fall.
Each airline, according to the administration’s arrangement, can operate up to 10 daily roundtrip flights between the US and each of Cuba’s nine worldwide airports, other than Havana, for a total of 90 daily round-trips.
Tourist travel by US citizens to Cuba remains prohibited under USA law, however. Once flight applications to Havana are approved later this summer, up to 20 roundtrips per day will be allowed between the USA and Cuba’s capital city.
Strong demand will come from Cuban-Americans visiting relatives, leisure travelers desiring a once off-limits experience, and executives paying for business-class fares to evaluate commercial opportunities, experts said.
American Airlines, the dominant carrier at Philadelphia International Airport, will operate its Cuba flights out of Miami.
There will be 90 round-trip flights between the cities when the agreement goes into effect. The U.S. providers still have to seek approval Cuban permission for the slots. Approval is still required by the government of Cuba, but some airlines are planning to start selling tickets over the next few weeks while they wait for that approval.
Minneapolis-St. Paul fliers will be landing in one of two cities: Matanzas, a northern coastal city roughly an hour’s drive from Havana, and Santa Clara, located in the center of the country. Decisions on flights there will be made later this year, the department of transportation said.
Cuban-Americans can travel to Cuba to see their relatives without restrictions since 2009.
US law still prohibits tourist travel to Cuba, but a dozen other categories of travel are permitted, including family visits, official business, journalist visits, professional meetings and educational and religious activities.
Foxx is expected to announce the airlines that will serve Havana later this summer.
“I want to express my concern right now that we be sure that those airports are fully vetted and they have the proper security screening in place”, he said.
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The department said it approved every route proposal outside Havana except for those of charter operator Eastern Airlines.
