Thursday, November 13, 2014

Bahamasair wants to come to Los Angeles

Bahamasair plans to seek authority to be the first airline to operate flights between the Bahamas and North America’s west coast.

                        “There has never been a direct service from California to the Bahamas,” Bahamasair managing director Henry Woods told reporters at the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) Airline Leaders Forum in Nassau, Bahamas. “California is obviously the gateway for passengers from Asia. We would like to pioneer California-Bahamas flights.”
 
Nassau-based Bahamasair, owned by the Bahamian government, operates a fleet of eight aircraft, a mix of Boeing 737-500s and Bombardier Dash 8-300s. It flies to 13 points in the Bahamas and to a limited number of international destinations, including Florida destinations Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Orlando. It also operates flights to Havana.
 
Woods said Bahamasair has a “draft plan” it will soon submit to the Bahamian government to operate flights between Nassau and Los Angeles. The carrier also is interested in getting permission for flights between Nassau and Vancouver and between Nassau and a destination in Texas.
 
Woods said Bahamasair would need new aircraft to operate to Los Angeles and Vancouver. “That comes second” after gaining government approval for the routes, he explained, adding that acquiring aircraft “is not as difficult a part as establishing [authority to fly] the route. Aircraft are available by purchase or lease, whichever is more palatable for the government.”
 
(Aaron Karp - ATWOnline News)

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