With four more ATR 72-600 aircraft set to join the Caribbean Airlines fleet in the coming weeks, the airline is already eyeing five potential new routes.
According to the Trinidad Guardian, Caribbean Airlines is looking at possibly adding San Juan (SJU), St. Thomas (STT), Martinique (FDF), Guadeloupe (PTP) and St. Kitts (SKB) to its route network. In a U.S. Department of Transportation filing dated April 17, 2023, the airline was seeking to fully utilize the scope of its Air Transport Agreement held between the respective governments of the United States and Trinidad and Tobago.
The filing itself is pretty generic, but what stood out was an operational forecast including projections for the remaining of 2023 and 2024. The forecast covered four cities already services by Caribbean including Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, New York and Orlando, but also covered San Juan and St. Thomas, two cities currently not being served by the airline.
To support its potential expansion, the filing also noted that they carrier will acquire four additional ATR 72-600s. Three of those are confirmed leases from Nordic Aviation Capital. All three are about four years old each, and previously flew for Myanmar-based Air KBZ. The first (registered 9Y-TTG) is expected to be join the fleet in Trinidad on May 4, 2023.
For now, there aren’t any details about how these routes will be integrated into the network, but Caribbean’s Head of Corporate Communications Dionne Ligoure said:
“At the appropriate time, the specifics of our growth plan will be shared with the media and the general public. Our plan to expand the airline’s route network is part of a strategic plan that has been thoroughly reviewed based on available data, trends and analysis.”
[Featured Photo: Bradley Wint/Gate Checked]
