Low cost carrier Arajet is once again looking to expand its route network, this time targeting the United States.
In a US Department of Transportation (DOT) filing on March 1, 2023, the carrier requested permission to fly from the Dominican Republic to five US airports. These include San Juan (SJU) in Puerto Rico, Miami (MIA) and three airports in the New York area. These three are the John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) and/or New York Stewart International Airport (SWF).
Even though the filing requests airports in the New York and New Jersey area, it’s possible the airline may only operate to one or two of these destinations initially. Arajet also indicated its plans to start service from Fall 2023 with its fleet of Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft.
The airline plans to first operate flights to cities that bring in tourism traffic, as well as cater to those with sizeable DR diaspora. They will then work with the DOT to expand its reach between the United States and Dominican Republic under an Open Skies agreement.
Arajet will be going up against stiff competition from airlines like JetBlue, American, Delta, RED Air, Eastern, Spirit and Frontier. Even though Arajet does not operate out of Punta Cana, they technically are competing with other carriers operating directly out of Punta Cana International (PUJ) as the bulk of DR resorts are located along the eastern coast line. If priced right, passengers wanting to go to Punta Cana may opt to enter the DR via Santo Domingo and take the 2 hour taxi or bus ride over.
With its current fleet of five 737 MAX 8s, the airline has already bumped up service to 17 destinations across 11 countries throughout the Caribbean, Central and South America. They are also working on adding service to new countries such as Belize, Trinidad, Barbados, Brazil, Guyana and Honduras. The airline is expected to take delivery of six more 737 MAX 8s in 2023, with 20 higher density MAX 200s also on order.
[Featured Photo: Arajet/Facebook]
