InselAir Aruba (Aruba) is planning to begin Miami International to Havana International return charter flights later this month using a combination of MD-82 and MD-83 machinery.
In return for the traffic rights, the Aruban Department of Civil Aviation (DCAA) said it would grant, on the basis of reciprocity and when applied for, designated US carriers the approval to operate 7th freedom charter flights to/from Cuba over the period January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015.
Currently, flights connecting the two Cold War enemies are restricted to charter operations though this will change in due course following the recent détente between Washington and Havana.
The US Department of Transportation (DOT) recently unveiled plans to expand services to Cuba to include scheduled operations. A "number of US airlines" are expected to want to enter the market though the allocation of any traffic rights will depend on the outcome of bilateral talks between US and Cuban authorities. The introduction of newly expanded general licences will also mean airlines will not require OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control) approval to engage in flights to the Communist-run island.
"With regard to U.S. carrier authority to serve Cuba, the Department has previously stated that, at such time as scheduled services could again be undertaken in the U.S.-Cuba market, we would take a fresh look at the market," a DOT statement said. "The Department has also stated that, in reviewing the market in light of the changed circumstances, including the updated bilateral relations with Cuba, any carrier holding long-dormant U.S.-Cuba authority would enjoy no advantage."
United Airlines (UA, Chicago O'Hare), which holds Cuban route authority inherited from Pan Am (1927) (New York JFK), has said it would operate regular flights to Cuba from both New York Newark and Houston Intercontinental, subject to government approvals.
Bilateral talks between the United States and Cuba can only go ahead if the Republican-dominated US Congress agrees to eliminate the embargo, imposed on the island shortly after Fidel Castro took power in 1959.
