JetBlue to Scale Back New York-Havana Flight from Daily to Weekly

Caribbean News…
18 January 2020 5:47am
JetBlue plane on tarmac, US and Cuban flags

JetBlue will scale back its service from New York JFK to Havana from daily to weekly at the end of April, citing the impact of restrictions on travel to Cuba put in place by the Trump administration, Travel Weekly reports. 

“Nearly three-and-a-half years after becoming the first airline to operate commercial service between the U.S. and Cuba in more than 50 years, JetBlue remains committed to serving Cuba via Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport,” the airline said. “At the same time, changes to the regulatory landscape have affected travel trends to the island.”

Last month, the federal government implemented a ban on commercial flights to Cuba airports other than Jose Marti. 

The administration also has stopped all cruises to the island, eliminated the people-to-people category of permissible reasons to visit Cuba and prevented U.S. citizens from doing business with any entity with ties to the Cuban government. The restrictions have severely cut into U.S. demand for Cuba travel. 

According to the Travel Weekly news report, JetBlue will end daily JFK-Havana flights on April 28 and will commence weekly Saturday flights on May 2. The carrier said it will continue to operate up to three daily Havana flights from Fort Lauderdale. 

United also serves Havana from the New York City metroplex, offering daily service from Newark. 

JetBlue on Thursday announced several other changes to its flight schedule, effective in the spring and summer. The carrier will bring Guatemala City into its route network with daily New York JFK flights beginning June 1. 

The carrier will also launch flights from New York to Nashville and Missoula, Mont., as well as introduce Missoula-Boston.  

JetBlue will exit Oakland on April 29, from where it currently serves Long Beach, Calif.; New York; and Boston. The airline noted that it will continue to operate Bay Area service in San Francisco and San Jose.

JetBlue will implement cuts in Long Beach service, eliminating short-haul routes, including Oakland.

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