by Daniel Nardini
Since the embargo against Cuba was eased some years ago, American Airlines has had 20 charter flights per week going to Cuba. Recently American Airlines has announced that it wants to inaugurate daily flights to Cuba in the hope that the embargo will soon be rescinded. Of course, that remains to be seen since the U.S. Congress has to lift the embargo. There is no question what is at stake for American Airlines in this move; if all sanctions against Cuba are removed then not only will American Airlines have daily flights from Miami in Florida but also possible flights from other cities in Florida and possibly as far away as flights to Cuba from Chicago and the U.S. west coast. There will be no question that tourism will rapidly expand as travel agencies will experience every-growing demand for people who want to travel to Cuba.
Not to be out-done, other airlines like Delta Airlines, United Airlines, and JetBlue Airways will eventually also be offering flights to Havana. Visa Card is prepared to offer card services for those tourists who go to Cuba, and American Express will do the same. Of course, all this is going on the premise that the embargo will be lifted and that both the U.S. and Cuban governments can iron out whatever differences they have. But the biggest driver in all of this is not whether the embargo will or will not be lifted more than getting a jump on the competition. That is the real name of the game—which company will get a large share of the possible tourist Cuba market. Strangely enough, the embargo seems to be seen more as a detail, a stumbling block to their ambitions. This is telling me that there will be considerable pressure on the U.S. Congress to rescind the embargo.
Again as I have said before, with the prospect of companies and individuals making possibly billions of dollars in investments, trade agreements and manufacturing deals, there will be many corporate lobbyists converging on Washington, D.C. who will push for the end of the trade embargo, or at the very least being able to punch holes in the embargo. Now we can be sure that American Airlines, and indeed all the other major airlines, will push for an end to the embargo. Before they did not have an opinion one way or the other with regards to the U.S. embargo on Cuba, but now the name of the game is being changed in the name of profits.
American Airlines and Cuba
by Daniel Nardini
Since the embargo against Cuba was eased some years ago, American Airlines has had 20 charter flights per week going to Cuba. Recently American Airlines has announced that it wants to inaugurate daily flights to Cuba in the hope that the embargo will soon be rescinded. Of course, that remains to be seen since the U.S. Congress has to lift the embargo. There is no question what is at stake for American Airlines in this move; if all sanctions against Cuba are removed then not only will American Airlines have daily flights from Miami in Florida but also possible flights from other cities in Florida and possibly as far away as flights to Cuba from Chicago and the U.S. west coast. There will be no question that tourism will rapidly expand as travel agencies will experience every-growing demand for people who want to travel to Cuba.
Not to be out-done, other airlines like Delta Airlines, United Airlines, and JetBlue Airways will eventually also be offering flights to Havana. Visa Card is prepared to offer card services for those tourists who go to Cuba, and American Express will do the same. Of course, all this is going on the premise that the embargo will be lifted and that both the U.S. and Cuban governments can iron out whatever differences they have. But the biggest driver in all of this is not whether the embargo will or will not be lifted more than getting a jump on the competition. That is the real name of the game—which company will get a large share of the possible tourist Cuba market. Strangely enough, the embargo seems to be seen more as a detail, a stumbling block to their ambitions. This is telling me that there will be considerable pressure on the U.S. Congress to rescind the embargo.
Again as I have said before, with the prospect of companies and individuals making possibly billions of dollars in investments, trade agreements and manufacturing deals, there will be many corporate lobbyists converging on Washington, D.C. who will push for the end of the trade embargo, or at the very least being able to punch holes in the embargo. Now we can be sure that American Airlines, and indeed all the other major airlines, will push for an end to the embargo. Before they did not have an opinion one way or the other with regards to the U.S. embargo on Cuba, but now the name of the game is being changed in the name of profits.