ROAD TOWN,BVI: Chief Minister and Minister for Tourism in the British Virgin Islands Dr Orlando Smith is encouraged by the receptive mood of president of American Eagle Airline Ed Criner during a recent meeting.

Chief Minister of the BVI, Dr Orlando Smith

The Chief Minister said talks focussed on additional flights into the Territory and the possibility of concessionary fares for residents who travel to Puerto Rico regularly. They also discussed the feasibility of new connecting services between Antigua, St. Maarten and the BVI.

“Most of our European visitors arrive on international flights that terminate in either Antigua or St Maarten. Current connecting flights from those destinations are not always adequate,” the Chief Minister noted.

He also said government remains concerned about those visitors’ ease of access to reliable connecting flights into the Territory especially following the recent merger of Leeward Islands Air Transport (LIAT) with Caribbean Star Airline.

The Chief Minister said government and American Eagle have appointed their own officers to review demand among the Territory’s European visitors who arrive in either Antigua or St Maarten and make recommendations for American Eagle to implement a new connecting service from those regional hubs into the BVI.

“The airline executive was very open to government’s requests, while indicating that the airline has commenced operation of special flights into the BVI,” he said.

However the Chief Minister noted that there was a need for those special services, and the number of available seats, to be better advertised.

The recent meeting was the Chief Minister’s second with the president of American Eagle, which followed an initial meeting in Puerto Rico earlier this year.