The BVI just announced this week that their BVI Airways will start air service between Miami and Beef Island (Tortola) starting in the fall of this year.
Why can’t WINAIR start looking at servicing SXM from our source markets such as Miami, Atlanta, Washington, New York?
Winair would be unable to start service to a US destination due to St. Maarten being rated a Category 2 country for International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA). They would have to fix issues of aviation oversight by the government that is preventing them from being a category 1 country. The problem goes back to 10/10/10 with the establishment of St. Maarten as a country. Before that, St. Maarten was a category 1.
True.
@ Chad – But WINAIR does fly to San Juan (SJU) at the moment (you can book it on their website: http://www.fly-winair.sx) which is also a US destination?!
Winair is allowed to continue the service they had when St Maarten was changed to a Category 2, but they are not allowed to add any new service to the US until St Maarten regains Category 1 status.
Winair should investigate doing this and present a plan
The more we can depend on our own air service, instead of relying on and investing in foreign air service, the better.
There is a lot of potential within Winair in terms of experienced management and staff. But it seems they are happy to just serve the regional destinations and let the competition get the big $$
No Winair can hardly make a profit servicing their current regional destinations, let alone deal with an international destination.
Well history doesn’t bode well as Winair failed miserably each time they wanted to expand air service beyond the eastern Caribbean. Testament to its failure is the heineken branded aircraft across Ennia insurances on the Pondfill (former “Air Lekkerbek” restaurant). That very questionable purchase (allegedly some people got huge kickbacks) almost sank Winair and it took numerous years to recover from it financially. Therefore the Supervisory Board has been quite prudent ever since each time ideas are tabled to go into larger aircraft that have the range to service SXM from for instance Miami, Atlanta, New York.
However, Winair is SXM’s national airline and as such it should be the objective that at one point in time the operation is gradually expanded and service from core markets in the US, but also regionally (Curacao, Colombia, Brazil etc), is made possible. In my opinion, this could only be done when Government’s involvement is reduced (privatization in some form) as the track record of state owned airlines around the world is dismal.
Curacao is doing it via Insel Air so why could SXM not do it? What is needed is vision and a solid business plan along with a privatization.