August 31-There were cheers and balloons as JetBlue sent off its first regularly scheduled flight from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to Santa Clara, Cuba – the first such flight between the US and the island nation in more than 50 years.
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The flight ushered in a new era of air travel to Cuba, and comes after months of collaboration between JetBlue, US officials, Cuban officials and business partners to resume air service between the two countries.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx was on board the JetBlue flight, joining 150 other passengers who were treated to live music and pastries before the flight.
Eight US airlines are expected to begin scheduled flights to Havana in the coming months.
In addition, Silver is the only airline awarded service by the U.S. Department of Transportation to all nine Cuban destinations beyond Havana, operating more Cuba routes than any other airline.
Commercial flights were suspended in 1961 following one of the more serious incidents in U.S.
The flights will take off from Atlanta; Charlotte, N.C.; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Houston; Los Angeles; Miami; Newark, N.J.; New York City; Orlando, Fla.; and Tampa, Fla.
Six passenger airlines and one all-cargo carrier have been cleared to fly to Cuban cities other than Havana. This new arrangement will facilitate visits for travelers that fall under one of 12 categories authorized by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
The resumption of air service between the two former Cold War enemies is the latest step in restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba, a strategy that President Obama avidly embraced almost two years ago.
The Fort Lauderdale-Santa Clara route is among a number of Cuban services planned by JetBlue, which will eventually operate up to seven daily flights to the country.
“This is awesome. We’re thrilled to partner with Southwest Airlines on this new scheduled flight to Havana”, TIA CEO Joe Lopano said in a press release. As Reuters reported, “In 2015, the Cuban government reported 161,233 Americans visited, compared to 91,254 in 2014, and arrivals through June almost doubled over the same period a year ago”.
“Until now, people flying to Cuba had to book charter flights, which required passengers to arrive at the airport four hours before takeoff”.
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“Our friends had been here and said, ‘Why don’t you come to Cuba before it’s too Westernized, before you see McDonalds and Wal-Mart and all of the other USA companies in Cuba.?'” said Gerri Hall, a U.S. citizen visiting Cuba.
