Headline: Delta Air Lines and United Airlines Request Exemption from US Department of Transportation Due to Low Demand for Flights to Cuba
Just hours after the announcement by JetBlue Airways that it will suspend all flights to Cuba starting September 17, two other major US airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, have requested an exemption from the US Department of Transportation. The exemption is being sought for several routes to the island due to the depressed demand for travel between the two countries.
According to Online Aviation, both Delta Air Lines and United Airlines have asked the federal authority to suspend several of their frequencies during the fall and winter seasons. The airlines cite a current surplus of flights and seats compared to the demand, necessitating the need for a temporary halt in services.
Delta Air Lines, in particular, has requested a seasonal waiver from October 29, 2023, to March 30, 2024, for its frequencies between Atlanta and Havana, as well as Miami and Havana. The airline expresses hope that demand will eventually recover, allowing for the reintroduction of services in the future.
Meanwhile, United Airlines has already notified the Department of Transportation about the suspension of its services between Newark Airport and Havana, effective October 29, 2023. This move means Cuba will lose its only non-stop connection with New York. However, unlike Delta, United does not seek an exemption from inactivity for these frequencies. Instead, the airline plans to concentrate its operations on Havana from its hub at the Houston-Intercontinental Airport. Currently, United is the sole US airline that does not provide flights from Florida to Cuba.
JetBlue, the airline that first announced the suspension of its flights to Cuba, has also requested a three-year extension of inactivity for its weekly frequencies between the United States and Cuba. The request applies to its routes between Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Havana, as well as between New York and the Cuban capital. JetBlue has deemed the services to Havana unsustainable in the current market and will cease all operations to Cuba on September 17, 2023. Additionally, the airline has expressed its willingness to relinquish the frequencies so that other operators can use them.
These requests from the airlines reflect the ongoing crisis in Cuban tourism, with concerns raised about the quality of services compared to destinations like the Dominican Republic and Mexico. The industry’s struggles are further highlighted by the recent suspensions announced by Spanish airline Iberojet, which will halt its flights to Santiago de Cuba, and Iberia, which plans to reduce its itineraries to Havana to just three flights per week.
Sources familiar with the issue attribute the cancellations to low occupancy rates on the flights and challenges faced by the Santiago de Cuba destination. The insufficient hotel infrastructure and lack of activities for visitors are cited as key issues that Iberojet aims to address. The airline aspires to attract diverse tourists beyond the “ethnic traveler,” but Santiago de Cuba is deemed ill-equipped to meet these aspirations.
Should the US Department of Transportation grant JetBlue a three-year inactivity exemption for its frequencies to Cuba, the airline has committed to returning them sooner or accommodating any procedures if it decides to resume operations to Havana in the future.