Prime Minister Gaston Browne says JetBlue’s withdrawal from Antigua and Barbuda was part of a wider reduction in service across the Caribbean and South America as the airline struggled financially.
Speaking Saturday on the Browne and Browne Show, Browne rejected suggestions that JetBlue’s departure resulted from a problem involving Antigua and Barbuda or its government.
“It wasn’t an Antigua-specific issue,” Browne said.
He said JetBlue’s previous expansion strategy was no longer working and the airline had been forced to consolidate its operations after recording hundreds of millions of dollars in losses.
According to Browne, the carrier has withdrawn from several destinations across South America and the Caribbean as part of that restructuring.
He said JetBlue’s failed attempt to acquire Spirit Airlines and the collapse of a proposed arrangement with American Airlines had added to its financial challenges.
Browne also said some competing Caribbean destinations subsidise JetBlue services to keep routes profitable, while Antigua and Barbuda does not provide the airline with a subsidy.
Source: Antigua News Room Jet Blue’s Financial Troubles Behind Regional Flight Cuts, Antigua PM Says.