In a recent turn of events, American Airlines has taken significant steps towards withdrawing their operations from a key airport. The airlines initiated these steps by submitting a formal appeal to the U.S. Department of Transportation. This move is primarily attributed to the declining levels of passenger engagement in the concerned destination, a fact that previously prompted another reputable airline to withdraw its primary operations.
Various sources disclosed that in March, American Airlines motioned for significant reductions in its offered services to several cities. The list includes Havana, Holguin, Varadero, and Santiago de Cuba. The motion included a significant decrease in their flight schedules for these regions. It’s worth mentioning that back in June, the airline had approached the authorities with a similar request.
Not too long afterward, the airline approached the authorities with yet another motion. This time, asking to downsize its daily roundtrip services between Miami and Santiago de Cuba. Driven by diminishing demand, plans are underway to reduce three out of the eight daily roundtrips between Miami and Havana. The flights affected by this decision are those scheduled for Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
Current trends suggest that as many as half of the eight scheduled flights from Miami to Havana might already be canceled on any given day, a testament to the falling demand levels. Furthermore, airline management has expressed interest in reducing the frequency of its daily roundtrip service between Miami and Holguin. The impact would be felt most heavily on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.
Additional considerations relate to another Cuban city, Santa Clara. Proposals are in place to reduce one of its two back and forth services from Miami. The series of such proposed changes by the American Airlines are currently under scrutiny by the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the airline is awaiting their approval.
American Airlines’ retreat from Cuban destinations is not an isolated incident. Other carriers have also been observing the same reduction in travel demand to Cuba. Delta airlines, in December 2017, ceased its flight operations between New York’s JFK airport and Havana, citing lack of sufficient demand.
A decline in airways traffic to Cuba was witnessed as early as 2017. Renowned airlines such as Frontier, Silver Airways, and JetBlue began to downsize their operations to Havana a mere few months post the launch of their flights to the country. Such a step was taken in light of the dwindling passenger interest.
American Airlines’ recent course of action was initiated in accordance with an enhanced travel advisory issued by the U.S. Department of State regarding Cuba. This advisory arose in response to an unsettling rise in crime rates within the country, a factor that possesses the potential to impact inbound tourism significantly.
Increased petty crime incidents pose a substantial threat to travelers bound for Cuba. Travelers need to stay vigilant to prevent commonplace misdemeanors such as pick pocketing, purse snatchings, and vehicle break-ins. Consequently, concerns regarding traveler safety in the country have been escalating.
Moreover, there has been a noted surge in violent crime occurrences, encompassing armed robberies and homicides in Cuba. This rise in violent criminal activities contributed significantly to the amplification of the travel advisory issued by the U.S.
The U.S. government emphasized the aforementioned risks to travelers in their advisory. The growing crime statistics in Cuba appear to have directly impacted the airlines’ decisions to taper off flight schedules. Reduction in flights to several key Cuban cities seems to be a reaction to this glaring issue.
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