REDjet seeking alternative routes to counter TT, Jamaica delays

Regional low-cost airline REDjet says it will be looking at alternative routes after it failed to break into the Trinidadian and Jamaican markets.

REDjet Business Development Director Robbie Burns said that the non-approval of the airline’s request to operate in Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago seems to be more “political” in nature rather than “technical”. He said that the decision by the governments of the two countries not to fully approve the airline’s commercial operations also has significant implications for Caricom, as it borders on a breach of several international treaties which govern “competition and the aviation sector”.

However, Burns said that the airline has already begun looking at alternative routes and destinations. He noted the success REDjet has achieved in Guyana, stating that passengers have doubled over the four weeks of operation. “The success we are recording is significant. We have been getting a very good response in the Guyana market, and we have been delivering on all of our promises,” Burns said.

Speaking with Guyana Times International at the Pegasus on June 13, Burns stated that REDjet was not just frustrated at the delays, but was most concerned at the motives behind the “bottlenecks and apparent bureaucratic inefficiency” that seem to be looming over the process.

He said the airline has received all of the relevant licences from the respective aviation authorities in Jamaica and Trinidad, and was just awaiting the final approval, which seems to be taking months. It has been more than four weeks since the airline was scheduled to commence operations in both countries.

Burns cited several incidences where it seemed as though “politics” was being played with the very “sensitive” issue of final approval.

He added that his airline anticipated that it would be given a very difficult time when it chose to enter that sector in the region. He said consumers in several parts of the Caribbean are outraged because they are being denied a service that they “absolutely need”. Burns explained that low-fare airlines is new to the region and is aimed at ensuring that all Caribbean citizens who use REDjet services enjoy the benefits of travel and leisure. He was adamant that, for too long, passengers and citizens have been taken advantage of by some unsympathetic airlines with unreasonable fare structures, poor service, and unusually high taxes. He called for an end to the exploitation of passengers by those who operate in a ‘monopoly-like’ atmosphere in the region’s travel and aviation sector.

The REDjet official called for Caricom to act quickly in recognisance of the damage the delays and non-approval of small airlines’ operations could have on its image and its treaty which calls for “competition and the promotion of liberalism, free trade and equity”.