Icelandair will soon fly between the US andCuba thanks to a Department ofTransportation ruling.- US
airlines objected to Icelandair's presence in the market but lost out in the end.
North Americans now have another option when flying to Cuba.
Icelandair is known for connecting North America and Europe through its home country of Iceland. But a new route will see the flag carrier from the Land of Fire and Ice take passengers between Cuba and both Florida and Texas.
The US Department of Transportation on January 13 approved an application by Icelandair to fly 170 round-trip charter flights between Havana, Cuba and the US cities of Miami, Orlando, and Houston.
The average American won't be able to simply buy a ticket on one of the flights as the US government limits what types of
Travel for tourism purposes is prohibited for American citizens but permitted reasons for travel include:
- Family visits
- Official business of the US government, foreign governments, and certain intergovernmental organizations
- Journalistic activity
- Professional research
- Education activities
- Religious activities
- Athletic competitions by amateur or semi-professional athletes or athletic teams
- Support for the Cuban people
- Humanitarian projects
- Activities of private foundations or research or educational institutes
- Exportation, importation, or transmission of information or information materials
- Certain authorized export transactions
US airlines object to Icelandair
US and foreign airlines can bid to operate flights between the US and Cuba under the DOT's public charter system for flights to Cuba, which allows 3,600 annual flights to operate from the US. But Icelandair's request to fly between two countries that aren't its homeland did not come without objection from US airlines.
Swift Air, World Atlantic Airlines, and Global Crossing Airlines — three US airlines that primarily offer charter services using passenger airliners — strongly objected to Icelandair's entry into the market.
"Icelandair's primary reason for seeking approval on an additional 170 flights over a four-month period is to impose an economic hardship on the current US air carriers," Mark Schneider, attorney for Global Crossing Airlines, wrote to the DOT. Icelandair responded to Global Crossing and Swift Air by claiming that it isn't taking slots away from any carriers and that its charter partner had already ruled out other US carriers.
"With no other applications for allotment from the pool before the Department, Icelandair fails to understand how it is taking any market share to the detriment of US based carriers," Jonathan Fuchs, Icelandair's general counsel for the Americas, wrote to the DOT.
Icelandair said that its advantage over US carriers is in the baggage holds of its
Carriers operating smaller aircraft such as the Boeing 737 and
Airlines have been adapting to the new reality of
Icelandair plans to operate the 170 flights between February 1 and May 31.