Howai: CAL flops on London route

(Trinidad Guardian) Caribbean Airlines’ route to London Gatwick has proven unsuccessful. So said Finance Minister Larry Howai in the Senate yesterday as he responded to questions on the operations and management of CAL. But the airline would not be cancelling the route, he said.

“The London route has not been a profitable route. We are in the process of doing a full evaluation of route optimisation analysis to determine how best we might be able to rationalise the overall level of routes for Caribbean Airlines but we have made no final decision with respect to any of the routes. All routes are in the process of being currently evaluated,” Howai said. PNM Senator Faris Al-Rawi asked whether the “route analysis would meet with the analysis which the new board was to put in place within 90 days of its appointment.”

Howai said the board had done a full analysis in terms of cost reduction and submitted a report. He added: “Following the analysis of the report I then asked that the specific route analysis be done as I wasn’t satisfied with the suggestions and recommendations that came from the first evaluation. “Caribbean Airlines had to employ specific consultancy support to assist with the completion of that exercise and the exercise is due to be completed within the next month.”

Pressed by Al-Rawi on who the consultant was, Howai said he did not have the name with him. On the training of non-national pilots, Howai said CAL trained 41 people during 2008 to 2013 and all worked for the airline on contract.