Max Kingsley-Jones/LONDON
BWIA hopes to revive plans to link with LIAT on regional services, as the two carriers face up to competition from Air Jamaica-backed start-up Eastern Caribbean (EC) Express. The airline is also poised to cement codeshare links with United Airlines from its hub in Washington Dulles, which could extend to a role in the Star alliance.
EC Express will launch operations in February, operating three Bombardier Dash 8-100s on a network in the eastern Caribbean from a hub in Barbados (Flight International, 3-9 November). The move will make the restructuring of troubled Antigua-based LIAT, in which BWIA holds a 29.9% stake, even more urgent.
Earlier this year on-off discussions with LIAT about working together came to nothing, and in March BWIA launched its rival regional airline - BWee Express - and set about trying to sell its LIAT stake. "We are now more hopeful that we can link with LIAT," says BWIA chief executive Conrad Aleong. "We have told LIAT to concentrate on the north [of the east Caribbean] and we will focus on the south. They are evaluating our proposal and we wait to hear from them."
BWee Express has two Dash 8 Q300s in service, and will receive a third next month. The decision to enlarge the fleet with more Dash 8 orders will be made next year, but if LIAT decides to co-operate then the fleet will not grow, says Aleong.
Meanwhile, BWIA launched its Port of Spain to Washington Dulles service at the end of October. It expects its interline agreements with United on 12 routes from the US carrier's hub to be converted to a full blown codeshare by March. Codeshares on services from Miami are also expected.
BWIA is also set to codeshare with United's Star partner Air Canada on services into Toronto and Aleong says that discussions about a role in that global alliance would be "a natural progression". BWIA plans, however, to introduce services to Delta's hub in Atlanta in July, and to Continental's Houston hub a year later, and envisages codeshare links with these carriers as well.
The airline will unveil its first rebranding for almost 30 years in early December and will relaunch under a modified identity, probably as "BWIA West Indies Airways". A decision on the new long-haul fleet is expected next year, with the Boeing 767-300ER topping the list of potential candidates to replace its four ageing Lockheed L-1011 TriStar 500s.
• Air Jamaica and Virgin Atlantic have signed a Letter of Intent covering a commercial and marketing joint venture on passenger services between Jamaica, the eastern Caribbean, the USA, London and other destinations which are served by the carriers.
Virgin says the two airlines will start serious negotiations on a "raft of issues" including reciprocal frequent-flier programmes and "opportunities" for codesharing.
Source: Flight International
