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At a mid-November meeting of Caribbean aviation officials, Trinidad and Tobago's transport minister called for rapid movement toward merging the operations of the various loss-making Caribbean air carriers into a larger regional airline. According to Airline Industry Information, an industry news service, regional officials are discussing a merger between the three largest airlines -- Antigua-based LIAT, Air Jamaica and Trinidad-based BWIA.
With tourism revenues down in the Caribbean and state-subsidized local carriers losing money, the region's political leaders are pushing for a merger of several airlines as a way to generate efficiencies and avoid an economically damaging reduction in service or, worse, the failure of one or more regional airlines.
Some industry and union officials oppose a merger, suggesting that more extensive coordination -- such as joint marketing and fuel purchasing -- is the answer. But some governments, such as those of Trinidad and the Bahamas, are wary of becoming trapped in a cycle of indefinite subsidies, and they harbor deeper concerns about the health of their tourism-dependent economies in the medium term. Governments have the power to force the issue, making a true merger of several Caribbean airlines likely within the next year or two.
Tourism generates $20 billion each year for the Caribbean economy, accounting for 30 percent of the region's GDP and providing one in four jobs, according to the Financial Times. The airline industry therefore is a lifeline for the regional economy. But the air travel and tourism market in the Caribbean, as in many other areas, is facing hard times.
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