THE Government is considering the addition of two daily unsubsidised flights on the domestic airbridge to accommodate short-notice travel between the islands, Trade, Investment and Tourism Minister Satyakama Maharaj said yesterday.
Maharaj, however, said subsidised flights will continue, with no plans to eliminate them, noting that the $400 airfare remains in place.
Speaking to the Express by phone, he said the Government was exploring options to ease congestion, including introducing unsubsidised flights costing about $1,000 for travellers seeking last-minute seats.
This would include tourists unable to access the service due to shortages.
‘It is difficult at times to get flights to Tobago. It happened to me. I was able to get to get a flight to Miami easier than a flight to Tobago,’ Maharaj said.
He said he was involved in these proposals because he carries the portfolio for tourism and wants to ensure that Tobago benefits from both local and foreign tourism from Trinidad.
‘We are exploring the possibility of having two additional unsubsidised flights to Tobago, at peak times. Twice a day, one in the morning and one in the evening. Discussions are ongoing,’ he said.
Asked how he would respond to critics who say efforts should instead be made to add more flights to the domestic route rather than offering unsubsidised flights, Maharaj said all options were being considered.
He said Caribbean Airlines (CAL) has been increasing its flights, but that also comes at a cost.
The addition of more flights would increase the subsidy, so other avenues have to be explored.
The minister said there was also the possibility of another airline operating on the domestic route to provide more seats.
‘We have to look at all ways of boosting tourism. Just to be clear, I am not saying that flights are increasing to $1,000. No, flights remain at $400 but we are looking at two unsubsisidsed flights to offer persons who are willing to pay that higher fare,’ he said.
US$17,306 per flight hour
The last fare increase on the domestic airbridge took effect on January 1, 2023, when then-finance minister Colm Imbert announced a $50 rise in ticket prices.
‘Revenues from international travel are used to subsidise the inter-island airbridge. Additionally, the rise in global energy commodity prices has resulted in higher operational costs for both the inter-island airbridge and seabridge. In this regard and consistent with our overall policy of sharing the burden of the cost of transport, I propose to increase the cost of interisland air travel for all tickets by $50,’ Imbert said during the budget presentation in 2022.
‘The estimated increase in annual revenue to Caribbean Airlines for the operation of the airbridge will be $50 million, which, with this increased price will still require subsidy of the airbridge of over $50 million per year,’ he said.
In 2022, CAL said operating costs averaged US$17,306 per flight hour.
‘It is important to note, that the domestic operation is characterised by consistent losses, US$9,613,100 (as at June 2022),’ the airline stated then.
CAL stated that the total operational costs for the airbridge as at June 2022 were US$18,777,648.
‘The high costs are driven by the frequency of flights and the short distance (52 miles) leading to an undesirable low block hour utilisation of aircraft and crews and maintenance costs – US$17,306 per flight hour. Nonetheless, the domestic schedule (inclusive of peak travel periods) considers the essential nature of the service, events and activities in Tobago, the total number of passengers over a twelve-month period and other information relevant to its operation,’ the airline added.
In an interview last week, acting chief executive officer of CAL Varma Khillawan reaffirmed the airline’s commitment to the domestic airbridge, dismissing claims that it intends to scale back the service.
He made the comments in response to what he said were social media posts suggesting such a move, seeking to allay public concerns.
‘Caribbean Airlines continues to service the airbridge. We have always been servicing the airbridge, and we support Tobago by providing the capacity for airlift between the islands. For the Easter weekend alone, we ensured we moved over 11,000 passengers, and we add capacity as necessary when we see the need to do that,’ he said.
‘The airbridge has been stable, and we actually have not been getting any complaints about the service we have been providing. But if there are any, we will address them accordingly. We have invested, and we assure the travelling public we will provide that service to the airbridge,’ Khillawan said.
