ST JOHN’S, Antigua — Hurricane Irma will have a negative impact on LIAT of EC$6 million (US$2.2 million) through to the end of the year, chief executive officer Julie Reifer-Jones said on Wednesday.
“Regional travel is very dependent on the state of the economies of the region. Events like this always have a negative impact on the countries affected and on growth prospects for the region as a whole,” Reifer-Jones said during a press conference at her office.
“This affects the demand for regional travel. This is one of the complexities facing a regional airline like LIAT. Two years ago, it was Dominica,” she noted.
She said based on previous experience in the region, it will take some time before there is recovery in St Maarten and Tortola, adding that these are key destinations in the LIAT network, Antigua News Room reported.
The CEO said LIAT’s commercial team will be carefully reexamining the airline’s schedule to determine whether there are other opportunities that can be explored to assist in minimizing the negative impact on revenues.
LIAT has restored its normal flight schedule “as far as possible” but is unable to operate commercially into St Maarten and Tortola at this moment.
“This is dependent on the authorities in those territories. I know that this has been very frustrating for our customers but we have to be guided by the conditions on the ground and the authorizations granted by the authorities,” Reifer-Jones added.
Source: Caribbean News Now