The American United Airlines resumed this Monday its direct flights to Havana from Houston, Texas, and Newark, in New Jersey, after two and a half years of suspension due to the covid pandemic. The Cuban Company of Airports and Airport Services (ECASA) reported that the airline will operate a daily frequency with both cities.
The first flight arrived this Monday morning at the José Martí International Airport from Houston, after several months of negotiation and infrastructure adjustments. Chicago-based United had planned to restart operations on October 31, 2022, but requested an extension from the US Department of Transportation because it needed more time to review expired contracts with service providers and equip the terminal where would stay.
The airline operated 14 weekly flights to Havana in March 2020, seven to Houston and the same number to Newark, when it suspended its operations due to the closure of borders and restrictions on the entry of travelers due to the spread of the coronavirus.
The negotiations for the restart of operations to Havana coincide with the lifting of the restrictions imposed by the Department of Transportation during the government of former President Donald Trump, which prohibited commercial flights by US companies to small airports outside the capital.
The first to manage a flight out of Havana was American Airlines, which on November 3 began operations at the Abel Santamaría International Airport, in Santa Clara.
The first to manage a flight out of Havana was American Airlines, which on November 3 began operations at the Abel Santamaría International Airport, in Santa Clara, an impulse to revive tourism in the provinces. The airline also plans to connect Miami with the destinations of Varadero, Camagüey and Santiago de Cuba.
Cuba is at the gates of the high season and the increase in travelers is already visible through the streets of the historic center of Havana, according to this newspaper.
The Cuban authorities hope that with the increase in flights, the meager results of tourism registered in 2022 will be recovered, the second largest foreign exchange generator after the export of health services. Official data confirms that the sector will close this year well below 2019 levelswhen more than 4.2 million travelers arrived on the Island.
The Government celebrates with pomp the growth of tourism in more than 552% this 2022 compared to last year, when there were still travel restrictions, with the arrival of 1,553,461 travelers from January to September, including the Cuban community abroad. However, the results are far from the goal set to receive 2.5 million tourists before the end of the year.
In this way, the Ministry of Tourism had no choice but to acknowledge last October that the objective will not be met and lowered the projection to 1.7 million international travelers.
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