New non-stop JFK/Mobay flight to boost tourist arrivals
UNITED STATES Ambassador to Jamaica Donald Tapia and Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, along with a raft of officials, welcomed the commencement of daily nonstop American Airlines service between New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport recently.
American Airlines flight No. 1349 arrived at 11:07 a.m. with passengers and crew being treated to a warm welcome by officials complete with a performance by a Jamaican mento band.
Ambassador Tapia noted that “the US and Jamaica have had a long history of diplomatic relations which includes strong airlift arrangements. Today is another representation of the strong ties between both countries, which will positively impact Jamaica’s tourism and our flagship carrier.”
Meanwhile, Bartlett welcomed the new service, noting: “The Northeast region continues to be a strong performer for us as a destination in terms of arrivals. For the summer period, May to September 2019, the US market region recorded a 9.3 per cent increase in arrivals with 785,055 visitors, compared to the 718,531 visitors during the corresponding period last year. During that period, the Northeast outpaced the overall US market and saw an increase of 13.3 per cent during the same period.
While stopover arrivals from the US also recorded an increase of 11.1 per cent for September 2019, the Northeast again outperformed the national average and grew by 18.1 per cent. This reintroduced service augurs well for us as a destination.”
Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Homer Davis, Donovan White, Director of Tourism, Dr Rafael Echvarne, CEO, MBJ Airports Limited, Omar Robinson, President, Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), Wellesley Joseph, AA Senior Regional Manager, Western Caribbean were among the specially invited guests at the flight arrival briefing.
Meanwhile, senior strategist, Delano Seiveright, pointed out that the new American Airlines service comes within the frame of increased flights between the United States and Jamaica, “There is daily non-stop Delta Airlines service between Detroit, Michigan, and Montego Bay, starting December of this year. Jamaica has also been benefiting from several other new flight services, including new nonstop flights between Dallas, Texas, and Montego Bay by Sun Country Airlines; St Louis and Montego Bay by Southwest Airlines; and increased frequency of flights into both Kingston and Montego Bay by Jetblue and Delta Airlines.”
He further noted that the increasing buoyancy in the tourism space is attributable to Bartlett’s consistent piloting of specific growthinducing efforts. “This includes further cementing and also opening up new source markets, including in Latin America and Europe; more new rooms; more new flights; closer collaboration with cruise operators; first-rate relationships with non-traditional players like Airbnb, among other things, that represents the very cornerstone of our aggressive tourism growth strategy.”
American Airlines offers its 200 million annual customers 6,800 daily flights to more than 365 destinations in 61 countries from its hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Washington, DC.