The regional airline, LIAT, is expected to lose an estimated 35.6 million EC dollars this year.
This is as a consequence of the recent natural disasters that struck several of LIAT’s destinations, resulting in the cancellation of as many as 408 flights, between the period June to September 2017, and triggering revenue loss of 5 million EC dollars.
This compares to 67 flights that were cancelled during the same period in 2016.
Chairman of LIAT’s shareholder governments, Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves speaking at a news conference this morning at Cabinet Room said that according to the airline’s management, the estimated financial impact of the 2017 Atlantic Hurricane Season on LIAT is US $6.5 million and the market recovery will take about nine to twelve months.
Dr. Gonsalves who attended a meeting of LIAT Shareholder governments in Barbados last Friday, said the passage of Hurricanes Irma and Maria in September led to the decimation of four of LIAT’s destinations, namely Dominica, Tortola, St. Martin and Puerto Rico, which together accounted for 30 percent of the total flights and 35 percent of the total revenue.
He said loads on regular flights also fell because of the general uncertainty in the market arising from natural disasters.
According to Prime Minister Gonsalves, LIAT is expected to record revenue losses of US$4.6 million or EC$12.5 million for the period October to December of this year.
LIAT was budgeted to collected an overall net profit of about half a million dollars, however, Dr. Gonsalves said the airline is now expected to record a loss of about 35.6 million dollars.
He said that in order to meet all of LIAT’s expenses for the period, additional money has to be invested in the airline, and as a consequence, a loan of EC$7 million has been obtained from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) for emergency support for the regional air transportation system.
