LIAT a major contributor to tourism

THE sustainability of intra-Caribbean tourism is dependent on sustainable regional air carriers.

This is the stance of Advisor to the CEO of LIAT, Lesroy Browne.

“Without a sustainable air carrier or carriers in the region, people will not be able to move from one territory to another. Intra-regional sustainable air service has been identified as a public good. We have heard over and over how so many territories are dependent on tourism; people have to move between the islands in order for the territories to earn their living practically.

“Also, viability has been a major challenge for Caribbean regional air carriers. Everybody knows that LIAT and most of the other Caribbean airlines are struggling, but it is not only in the Caribbean but it is an industry-wide situation for airlines,” he explained to the recently held Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) State of the Industry Conference.

“LIAT has stayed the course for 57 years and is now being re-energised. In December 2012, LIAT’s four main Government shareholders approved a fleet modernisation project. The project involves the replacement of LIAT’s ageing fleet with new ATR 600 series aircraft. The plan is to acquire 12 aircrafts through a combination of lease and purchase.”

In his presentation, “The Realities of Intra-Caribbean Tourism: Who Gets It”, he stated that air travel, the main mode of travel in the Caribbean, is considered to be: costly, because of total airfare inclusive of Government taxes; inconvenient, because of persons being unable to move between some territories in a day; and a hassle, because of the completion of E/D cards for each territory visited and the security procedures employed.

“However, in recent times, many Caribbean territories have begun to recognise the importance of intra-Caribbean tourism to their economies. Those who get it are territories that are: building an attractive product, effectively marketing their product, introducing innovative ‘pulling’ programmes, and allowing easier access – less entry requirement (visa),” he highlighted.

 Browne also explained to tourism officials that if profit is to be achieved, persons need to be travelling.

“In our entire area – 21 destinations – we have about 20 million persons, and in the last five years we carried just under an average of one million. So this shows that we have a very small market in the 21 destinations that we operate.

“More than 75 per cent of our traffic is from persons domiciled in the region. We are basically dependent on what is happening in the region. The other 25 per cent are people coming from North America and Europe and they may be going to one of the destinations where there may be no international air traffic. Also, trends for the last six years, 2008-2013, confirm that the intra-Caribbean traffic has declined. We have seen a decline year over year since 2008. Intra-Caribbean travel is at its peak in the months of July and August; you get a little bump in either March or April depending on when Easter falls, and then at Christmas time,” he pointed out. (TL)