The United States approved this Wednesday the request of American Airlines to resume flights to five destinations in Cuba. The measure supposes the return of the airline to the routes that connect Miami with Santa Clara, Varadero, Holguín, Camagüey and Santiago de Cuba.
American Airlines indicated that, starting in November, there will be two daily flights to Santa Clara and one a day to each of the remaining airports.
Currently, the company maintains six daily flights between Miami and Havana, a route that it resumed in December 2021, after the reopening of the airspace closed by the pandemic.
The return of the operator was accompanied by several controversies, one of the most recent being the one generated by the surcharges for the second suitcase. Until May, the second package was charged at 40 dollars, which later became 65. The first, however, did drop its price, from 50 to 30 dollars.
Currently, the company maintains six daily flights between Miami and Havana, a route that it resumed in December 2021, after the reopening of the airspace closed by the pandemic.
In addition, the number of suitcases allowed if the origin is Cuba is limited to two free, which, on the way back, cost 200 dollars. Passengers were very upset with this measure, since travelers from other countries are allowed, for the same price, to carry four pieces of luggage.
The company’s return to the Island was also marked by the high price of its tickets, which amounted to almost a thousand dollars on those difficult dates. In mid-January, the cost was reduced by approximately half and, although it coincided with the start of the low season, US media said that how empty the ships were flying was a decisive factor in taking this measure.
American Airlines travel was interrupted in 2019, when the Donald Trump Administration approved a ban on US airlines flying to eight international airports in Cuba outside of Havana.
In June of this year, the Joe Biden government announced that it was restoring the affected commercial flights “with immediate effect.” Secretary of State Antony Blinken maintained that the measure was “in support of the Cuban people and in the interests of United States foreign policy.”
In addition to American Airlines, JetBlue and Southwest also fly to the Cuban capital.
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