[dropcap]O[/dropcap]fficials of the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority on Wednesday welcomed the newly reintroduced American Airlines evening service flight from Miami with a warm ceremony at the VIP Lounge of Hewanorra International Airport. The arrival ceremony was attended by tourism minister Dominic Fedee, as well as members of the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority, the Saint Lucia Air and Sea Ports Authority (SLASPA) and the airline’s crew members. American Airlines flight 1335 landed at Hewanorra International Airport at 10:49 p.m. carrying approximately 130 passengers.
To commemorate the event, passengers were greeted with the sounds of the Laborie Steel Pan Orchestra and a welcome drink. A hand-carved plaque from local art studio, Eudovic’s, was presented by Mr. Fedee to Captain Duane Schlegel, who accepted on behalf of American Airlines. “This is a significant reintroduction to the island after a decade, and a major asset to our tourism product,” the minister said. “This added flight is expected to boost tourism arrivals, which has seen hotels, guest houses and the AirBnb sector increase their room capacity over the past years.”
Ms. Tiffany Howard, the Acting CEO at the SLTA added: “Saint Lucia is optimistic that the new American Airlines late-night service will be sustained beyond the peak winter tourism season. For American Airlines passengers the additional flight is a response to demand for more options into and out of Saint Lucia, as the destination has been receiving increased nonstop flights from the United States this winter.” The following day, the departing American Airlines flight 1550 was greeted with a beautiful rising sun as it took off for Miami International Airport at 8:13 a.m.
Currently, American Airlines offers a daily morning flight to Saint Lucia from Miami, Florida, and a weekly flight from Charlotte, North Carolina. The airline will also resume seasonal, weekly flights from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 22, 2018. Both JetBlue and Delta operate daily flights into Saint Lucia from New York City and Atlanta, Georgia, respectively. Weekly direct flights are also available from Newark, New Jersey on United Airlines and from Boston, Massachusetts on JetBlue.
