Statement by the Honorable Kye M. Rymer Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Communications and Public Works Announcing American Airlines Direct Flights from the Virgin Islands to Miami, Florida, USA
Hello to all the beautiful people of the Virgin Islands.
During Tuesday’s budget speech, the Honorable Prime Minister indicated that in a few days the public could expect a major announcement regarding air bridges to the Virgin Islands.
Well, the Prime Minister is a man of his word, and I am grateful to him for his confidence in me, for appointing me Minister of Airports.
This morning, I am delighted to report that we have received confirmation to publicly release that beginning June 1, 2023, American Airlines will begin direct flights between Terrence B. Lettsome International Airport in Beef Island and Beef Island International Airport. from Miami to the continental United States. and American Airlines simultaneously issued a press release to this effect.
Let me repeat that. June 1stAmerican Airlines will begin direct flights between Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport in Beef Island and Miami International Airport in the continental United States and they simultaneously issued a press release to that effect.
Individuals will be able to begin reserving seats tomorrow, December 3, 2022 through American Airlines’ online portal at www.aa.com.
American Airlines’ direct service to the Virgin Islands will see daily flights departing Miami at 10:25 a.m. and arriving at Beef Island at 1:30 p.m.; depart Beef Island at 2:30 p.m. and arrive in Miami at 5:30 p.m.
What’s even better for us is that Miami is the home base for American Airlines and American Airlines is the largest carrier at Miami International Airport. This means people traveling outside of the Virgin Islands using this service, including Virgin Islanders, members, residents and visitors, will be able to seamlessly connect to more than 140 destinations served by American Airlines, including others Caribbean destinations and the rest. of the world.
It also means that conversely, it is now much easier, faster, more convenient – and it will be more affordable – for potential visitors to travel to the Virgin Islands for vacations, business meetings, etc. . This is a game changer for the Virgin Islands as it opens up a world of possibilities for us.
This service, as I said, will start on June 1, 2023.
The aircraft that will be used for this service will be an Embraer E175, which can operate with our existing runway length. It’s only the 14the September of this year, we landed an Embraer E190 operated by Sky High Airlines, safely at Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport. This proved that the existing length of our runaway is well suited to this American Airlines Embraer E175 which is smaller to operate a direct flight from the continental United States.
Based on the number of flights per week and aircraft capacity, we are looking at a possible increase of over 100 additional passengers traveling per week or approximately 455 additional passengers arriving in the Virgin Islands per week.
The impact of this will be extremely positive for us.
Initially, our employees will have the possibility of taking a flight and being in Miami in a few hours; so people can take their long weekend and vacation getaways, which are a little more cumbersome to manage with our current travel options.
Automatically, these direct American Airlines flights will mean increased economic opportunity for our beautiful Virgin Islands, especially for our taxi drivers, tour operators, accommodation owners, vehicle rental companies and many other businesses.
In the budget speech, the Prime Minister mentioned that people should equip all the suitable places they have for Airbnb. I want to endorse this recommendation as there will be a demand for rooms from June 2023; with more than 400 additional people arriving in the Virgin Islands.
All of this activity is also going to have a ripple effect on the economy as a whole and open up huge opportunities for us, as I’m sure the hon. Prime Minister will talk about shortly.
Restoring American Airlines flights to the Virgin Islands, especially at this time, is a major accomplishment for us. A lot of hard work has been done to make this a reality.
I would like to thank and congratulate the Managing Director of the BVI Airports Authority (BVIAA), Mr. Kurt Menal, and his team at BVIAA. I must also mention the Director, Mr. Clive Smith and Mrs. Drucilla Fahie, who have all worked tirelessly over the past few months – engaging, liaising with several airlines so that we can develop routes and increase air bridges, not just to the continental United States, but also to other regional and Caribbean destinations.
I would also like to thank the Director of Tourism, Mr. Clive McCoy, and his team at the BVI Tourist Board, who have also been instrumental in our efforts to increase air travel over the past few months.
It was not until October 2022 that I led a delegation that included Mr. McCoy, Mr. Menal and other BVIAA officials, including the new Chairman of the BVIAA Board of Directors, Mr. Theodore Burke , at the Routes World Event in Las Vegas. , where we met several airlines, of which American Airlines was one of them, with whom we had already had conversations. Since the Routes Event, the conversation with American Airlines has moved up a gear.
I must also thank the newly appointed Boards of Directors of the BVI Airports Authority and the BVI Tourist Board who have supported our efforts since taking office, and in particular Dr Hon. Prime Minister Natalio Wheatley and my ministerial colleagues, who have also provided invaluable support. when called.
And let me say that American Airlines’ decision to resume service to the Virgin Islands at this time demonstrates their overwhelming faith in the BVI and our tourism product.
First, American Airlines is starting, as I said, with daily flights. In many other destinations they ventured to, they started with flying only two or three days a week. They will fly daily to the Virgin Islands.
Second, throughout our negotiations and discussions with American, not once did the issue of minimum guaranteed seat concessions come up. So we don’t pay American Airlines to come to the BVI and there is no minimum seat guarantee. This speaks volumes about the confidence American Airlines places in the Virgin Islands and the high demand for our destination.
What we have achieved today, and other similar achievements that are underway for the future, is the result of a refocused approach to the development of air services adopted by this government and the BVIAA, aimed at optimizing the facilities and capacity while optimizing – adjusting the airport master plan to meet future demand needs and the continued need for air connectivity.
We work with what we have; generating more business, generating more revenue, while setting things up for expansion.
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