ANTIGUA & BARBUDA TOURISM AUTHORITY

A short welcome ceremony was held at the VC Bird International Airport yesterday evening to mark the arrival of the much anticipated inaugural Caribbean Airlines flight 429 from New York. The non-stop flight was greeted by a high powered delegation headed by the Honourable Prime Minister, Dr. Hon. Baldwin Spencer. Also on hand to toast the arrival of the new flight were Minister of Finance & the Economy, Hon. Harold Lovell, Chairman of the Tourism Authority Ted Isaac, CEO of the Tourism Authority, Colin C. James, General Manager of the Hotel Association, Neil Forrester and Caribbean Airlines, Corporate Communications Manager, Laura Asbjornsen.

Tourism Minister Hon. John Maginley who arrived on the inaugural flight commended Caribbean Airlines for the speed with which negotiations were concluded. Minister Maginley began discussions with the airline in September 2010.  The Minister also urged the airline to consider increasing the number of flights to 3 or 4 per week or possibly even daily flights next year.

Derede Samuel-Whitlock, Director of Tourism, USA, who also arrived on the flight along with specially invited media representatives from the USA commented on the uniquely Caribbean service provided by the airline stating that “the experience begins as soon as you enter the aircraft”.
 
Laura Asbjornsen, Head of Corporate Communications at Caribbean Airlines who flew into Antigua from Trinidad for the occasion remarked that the US market continues to be a vital market for the Caribbean region. “Expanding our North American operations to Antigua is in keeping with our drive to develop our hub operations here within the Caribbean.” She also stated that this flight meets the needs of local people who want to stay in touch with friends and family in the US.

The new flight which provides non-stop service from New York to Antigua is expected to be extremely well received at this time of the year due to the favourable flight times and the generous baggage allowance afforded by Caribbean Airlines.

Caribbean Airlines Flight 428 operates on Tuesdays and Fridays departing Antigua at 8:45 a.m. and arriving at JFK at 11:50 a.m. The return Flight 429 leaves JFK at 1:55p.m. and arrives at V.C. Bird International at 6:55pm.  Customers can book online at www.caribbean-airlines.com, call the airline toll free at 800.744.2225 or contact travel agents to make bookings.