Wednesday, June 24th 2009 — Airlines around the world are cutting back on flights, trying to save on fuel and putting a freeze on hiring. But Panama-based carrier Copa Airlines, which entered the Trinidad and Tobago market a little over a year ago, has increased the number of flights it operates out of the country on a weekly basis.
“We started with a schedule of four flights a week but since our inaugural flight, we’ve moved up to six,” said Camille Bennett, Copa Airlines local station manager.
Speaking to reporters at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Port of Spain, where Copa and the Hyatt’s administration yesterday welcomed media professionals from the Dominican Republic and Panama for a short educational stay in T&T, Bennett explained the secret to Copa’s success in tough economic times.
“Copa is a very progressive company. The way that we operate, the modern aircraft we have, the new technology we use, our fuel-efficient aircraft allow us to be quite successful in what we do,” she said.
The airline which is more than 60 years old, offers direct fights from Piarco to Panama.
The carrier made its first trip to Trinidad and Tobago last March. From Panama, travellers can fly directly to Miami, Orlando and Washington DC in the US; Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Honduras in Central America; as well as Aruba, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Cuba in the Caribbean; and Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia and Uruguay in South America.