Others, However, Still Bidding For More Slots

Enthusiasm for air travel from the U.S. to Cuba has cooled somewhat, at least on the part of some major carriers. But interest on flights from south Florida to Havana remains strong.

The Miami Herald reports that one of the most recent carriers to change its mind about expanding its service to Havana is FedEx, which has withdrawn an application for three additions slots it had filed with the DOT. Last month, Southwest dropped its request for a second daily flight from Tampa to Havana, saying it was shifting its focus on winning approval to fly to Hawaii. In a DOT filing, Southwest said "Given that focus and overall capacity constraints, Southwest is unfortunately not in a position to apply for the U.S.-Cuba frequency at this time."

But American has asked for permission to make change a proposed midday flight from North Carolina to Havana to one that would originate in Miami. That would increase the number of daily flight by American between the two cities to six. In requesting the change, American said it is seeing "persistently strong demand" for expanded service between Havana and Miami.

JetBlue has requested an additional daily flight from Fort Lauderdale to Havana beginning May 1. Alternately, it would like to add a second Saturday flight between those two cities, citing an imbalance between airlines in flights to Cuba. In its filing, JetBlue said that it was the only airline to not return any of its U.S.-Havana slots.

Regular air service from the U.S. to Havana increased dramatically during the Obama administration, but since Donald Trump was elected, relations between the two counties have cooled somewhat, which could be affecting the number of tourists traveling between the U.S. and Cuba.

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report