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TOURISM MINISTER, Edmund Bartlett, has urged the public to remain calm following the recent rout cutting exercise by Air Jamaica, as the Government was making provisions for other airlines to fill the gaps left by the national carrier.
According to Bartlett, American Airlines, Virgin Air, Jet Blue, Blue Panorama and other airlines were chomping at the bit to start flying into the island from various gateways in the United States and Europe to fill most of the 140,000 seats which would be left vacant by the Air Jamaica cutback.
“<span style="font-weight: bold">The net result will mean 15,000 seats will be lost, at maximum but there is no need to be in any panic whatsoever.</span> We have taken steps to ensure that the flight security of the industry has been ensured,” Bartlett told reporters during his monthly press conference at the Tourism Ministry in New Kingston yesterday.
Last week Air Jamaica announced that it would be cutting its service to the US cities of Miami, Florida; Los Angeles, California and Atlanta, Georgia as well as Caribbean neighbours the Cayman Islands. The airline also announced it would discontinue its service between Jamaica and Barbados and Jamaica and Grenada.
The cuts would mean less visitor arrivals from these destinations but <span style="font-weight: bold">Bartlett was upbeat <span style="font-style: italic">that the fragile tourism industry</span> would <span style="font-style: italic">not suffer too badly</span>.</span>
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