Jamaica is currently in a hot bid for securing more air connectivity to return the destination to post Melissa numbers.

Tourism interests are now engaging with major airline partners to strengthen airlift arrangements and secure air connectivity to the island with the objective of safeguarding the tourism sector, amid the recent cessation of operations of low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines, geopolitical tensions, volatile oil prices, and high airfares.

The disclosure was made by Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett advised that he has already held talks with the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) through its chairman to provide strategic direction for immediate discussions to be held with major airlines.

Challenges faced by carriers

Admitting that air carriers have been indicating “big pressures on their yields, big pressure on the price of fuel” and the negative impact on the route distribution system, Bartlett cited the imperative for Jamaica to move swiftly to secure airlift arrangements.

While acknowledging that Jamaica is still in a very strong position in relation to the rest of the region, he emphasised that demand for the destination “is very strong right now; I came in [recently] on a [flight] that had no space for anything and that’s the feature of the situation here.”

The minister tells JIS News that the Government remains resolute in bringing new carriers to the island, highlighting the country’s expanding airlift connections and strategic push into Latin American markets. He points to carriers like Copa with about 15 flights a week coming into Jamaica, which covers almost all of South America. 

This is in addition to LATAM coming to Jamaica out of Lima, Peru, as their gateway, but are back-channelling into all the other countries in South America.

Minister Bartlett also points to Wingo, which is a low-cost carrier of Copa coming out of Medellin and Bogota – six flights a week, three from each area, as well as Avianca, which tourism authorities are working on now… and Aeroméxico, which is expected to start flying out of Mexico in December or the first quarter of 2027.

He says Jamaica will continue building its capacity to absorb the demand of tourism.