Blames the imposition of American restrictions for the move
Washington still officially bans Americans from visiting Cuba as tourists but travel is permitted for visiting family or cultural and educational exchanges.
American low-cost carrier, JetBlue, which was the first US airline to resume regular flights to Cuba after diplomatic ties were restored, is suspending all flights to the communist-governed Caribbean island. The effective date of the suspension is September 17.
JetBlue says it is forced to take this action due to the imposition of American restrictions. However, it did not expand on the restrictions it was referring to.
“Demand for travel to the island has been significantly affected by restrictions on travel to Cuba that were put in place after we launched service,” the airline said in a statement yesterday, announcing a halt to services to the island. “Exiting Havana will allow us to redeploy additional aircraft on our top-performing routes,” explained JetBlue.
Amid great fanfare, the New York-based airline carried out the first commercial flight to Cuba in 2016 five decades after a historic rapprochement between the former Cold War foes. Three years after flights resumed, American President Donald Trump suspended them to all cities except the capital, Havana, as he sought to roll back ties established under his predecessor, Barack Obama.
In 2022, President Joe Biden’s government allowed the flights to resume.
Tougher sanctions under Trump and the Covid pandemic battered Cuba’s tourism industry which is the main source of exchange for the communist government.
Washington still officially bans Americans from visiting Cuba as tourists but travel is permitted for other reasons such as visiting family, or cultural and educational exchanges.
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