Since American Airlines, Aeromexico, United Airlines and Spirit announced that they will delay their return to the country until April, local businessmen have given up hope that air connectivity will improve in the coming weeks.
Six international airlines operate in Nicaragua, but currently only Copa and Avianca are flying. The remaining four have postponed their return and according to their latest announcements, they would return until April.
Starting from September this year Spirit Airlines will fly three times and four times a week from La Aurora Airport to Houston, and Orlando, respectively.
In a statement, the Guatemalan Tourism Institute explained that "... As of September 7, Spirit will fly from Guatemala to Houston three times a week and from November 8, 4 times a week, for this route it will use an A319 crew with capacity for 145 passengers.
Spirit Airlines has opened a commercial office in Costa Rica, where it has been operating for the past ten years.
Through an agreement with a local company, the low-cost airline will have a commercial representation office to serve customers in the country.
"...There are at least 10 low cost airlines operating in Costa Rica according to data from the Civil Aviation Authority and Spirit was the first to operate under this format.Others include Veca, Southwest, Alaska, Volaris Costa Rica, Wingo, JetBlue, Interjet, Frontier and Air Canada and West Jet."
During the past year 224 thousand passengers traveled from Panama to other countries using low-cost airlines, registering a 5% increase compared to 2015.
Although the growth rate is relatively low, it represents a transformation in the Central American air market.Spirit, VivaColombia and Wingo are three of the low-cost airlines that have increased their presence in the market, competing with the airlines that traditionally shared the region's market.
Starting from May 28 Spirit Airlines will begin flying three times a week between the cities of Managua and Houston, in the United States.
After eight years of operating in the country, the low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines has announced a new air link with the United States.
"... Spirit Airlines spokeswoman for Latin America, Irisaida Mendez said at a press conference that the airline will fly the route Houston-Managua three days a week from the "Augusto C. Sandino" International Airport in Managua. "
The company received the authorization to expand the jet fuel plant in Comalapa and plans to invest $20 million between 2015 and 2016 to improve the capacity of the plant in Acajutla.
Expansion of the terminal near the Comalapa airport will cost approximately $1 million and will allow for storage of up to 16,000 barrels of jet fuel to meet demand from the airlines with which it holds contracts.
As of May 28, 2015 Spirit Airlines will fly three times a week from Houston to Managua and San Pedro Sula, and San Jose and San Salvador four times a week.
From a statement by Spirit Airlines:
MIRAMAR, Florida - Spirit Airlines has announced it will expand its nonstop service to ten new destinations starting from the spring of 2015.
The new locations include cities within the country, including Tampa, Baltimore / Washington, DC and Oakland / San Francisco Bay to seven destinations in Latin America, including Mexico, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua (international routes are subject to foreign government approval ).
Spirit Airlines plans to increase the number of flights it operates from San Pedro Sula to five a week and open, in the future, a frequency between Tegucigalpa and Miami.
Up until now the airline has operated frequencies from San Pedro Sula to several cities in the United States and Canada, but is now examining, together with the Honduran government, the ability to operate in the short term, flights between Tegucigalpa and Miami.
Following the example of Panama, attracting new airlines in Costa Rica has had a positive impact on the number of tourists coming into the country.
Improving a country's air connectivity is the main recipe for increasing the influx of visitors and improving the country's ranking as a destination for tourism. These elements, along with others, explain the 7% increase in the number of tourists who came to Costa Rica in January and February 2014 compared to the same period in 2013.
The low-cost carrier Spirit will offer connections to 26 U.S. cities.
Promoting flights to Southern USA will be the cornerstone of Spirit's expansion strategy in El Salvador.
The airline, which recently made its maiden flight between San Salvador and Fort Lauderdale will offer connections to 26 U.S. cities, with the possibility of flying to more cities depending on demand.
The airline announced direct flights between Fort Lauderdale and San Salvador starting June 13.
The company will begin operations with three weekly direct flights.
"... in the company's Web site, it is clarified that 'the service to San Salvador, El Salvador, is subject to government approval," says Laprensagrafica.com.
The airline currently covers almost all destinations in the region (except for Belize), USA and much of the Caribbean.
Spirit’s pilots went back to work; the company will resume operations on Friday 18.
The pilots of the airline, together with the International Pilot’s Association (ALPA) announced that they’ve reached a tentative agreement with the company.
The new contract, unanimously recommended by the pilot’s union, must still be ratified by ALPA.
In order to compensate its customers for the time off the air, the airline is offering a special promotion, consisting on a $50 coupon and 5,000 miles for its Free Spirit customer program.
All the flights of the discount airline Spirit are cancelled, at least until June 17; its pilots demand a 30% wage increase.
Spirit has regular flights linking Fort Lauderdale with several Central American airports: Guatemala City, San Pedro Sula, Managua, San José and Panama.
The company’s business model is based on low labor costs, and has spent the last three years dealing with complaints from the union.
Flying between San Pedro Sula and the United States is becoming cheaper due to an aggressive and growing market presence by Spirit Airlines.
The consolidation of San Pedro Sula as an economic and commercial center, along with tourism development on the Honduran Caribbean’s north coast, encourages strong competition among the airlines that serve that market.