United Airlines’ inaugural non-stop flight lands in Dominica

Dominica’s aviation sector marked an important milestone as the country welcomed the inaugural non-stop flight by United Airlines (UA) from Newark, New Jersey, the United States on February 15, 2025. The inauguration witnessed a special ceremony at Douglas-Charles Airport where top leaders including Prime Minister Dr Roosevelt Skerrit and Tourism Minister Denise Charles-Pemberton were present. 

Dominica, which is majorly dependent on tourism for its economic development, has been making comprehensive investments to upgrade its infrastructure in the form of airports, cruise village and cable cars and beginning new air routes with countries such as the US to increase its tourist footfall. 

The carrier is expected to operate the weekly-once flight on Saturdays to Dominica with their Boeing 737-700. The service will run until the end of August and resume in October. Besides boosting tourism, the flight will also see the movement of business professionals and ideas, raising Dominica’s economic prospects.

Tourism minister calls new air service ‘historic’

Addressing the ceremony where passengers and crew members of the first UA flight were given a grand welcome, Charles-Pemberton called the new service ‘historic’ and said it would improve air access to Dominica. 

“Today with the launch of the historic United Airlines flight from New Jersey to Dominica that opportunity grows even bigger for every [Dominican],” the minister said. 

“This flight is not just about adding another route, it is about transformation, it’s about breaking barriers, opening doors and unlocking new possibilities for tourism, business and personal travel.” She said with the new direct flight from Newark, Dominica finds itself connected to the world than ever before. 

The plane was given air salutation after it landed and government officials and other attendees, including PM Skerrit personally received the visitors who were seen carrying little flags of Dominica. 

The Dominican tourism ministry hailed the occasion, saying on social media platforms: “Yesterday we made history with the first direct flight from Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey to Douglas-Charles Airport in Dominica!”

It said the latest service makes Dominica the UA’s 24th destination in the Caribbean region and the 64th in the wider Latin American and Caribbean network. 

A pre-boarding ceremony was also held in Newark before the flight took off where Dominican Bouyon singer Asa Bantan performed. The ministry added, “We had a blast from the pre-boarding ceremony all the way to the arrival ceremony in Dominica! We got all the visitors excited about Dominica carnival and flying with the bouyon boss @asabantan and seeing him perform at Newark was a proud moment for aviation, bouyon music and Dominica!”

‘This is only the beginning’

The tourism minister said the improvement in air connectivity would mean more visitors setting foot in Dominica, checking into local hotels, eating in local restaurants and exploring and exploring Dominica’s tourism depths. 

She praised the ruling Dominican Labour Party and said the Skerrit-led government is keen to complete the international airport which is expected to give a big push to the country’s efforts to promote tourism. 

“This is only the beginning,” Charles-Pemberton said. “The Dominica Labour Party government is not stopping here. We are building something even bigger: Dominica’s first international airport.”

“Imagine what that will mean for our country. Direct flights from even more destinations, easier access to trade, more investments and more jobs,” she added.

She also said that UA flight alone has created 25 new jobs in the island-state. She also appealed to stakeholders to promote Dominica. 

PM Skerrit thanks UA

Prime Minister Skerrit thanked the American carrier for showing confidence in his country, saying they are “truly grateful”.

“It is no doubt a source of encouragement for us to do even more as we seek to achieve our development goals and aspiration,” he said. 

“This is a day that all of us in Dominica should celebrate and welcome,” he added.

The PM, who was recently in the United Arab Emirates for the World Governments Summit, said the people of Dominica should thank the Almighty whenever anything positive happens in the country. He also urged them to pray that such developments multiply and bring even bigger returns to the country. 

Reminding the citizens that development is a journey and there could be moments of both challenges and celebrations, PM Skerrit said February 15 marked the moment of celebration and created an opportunity to generate more jobs. He said such moments give the country the chance to boost its foreign exchange reserve and take care of its people better. 

PM Skerrit, who has said in the past that he is also in talks with cruise liners in the US to contribute to country’s cruise industry, expressed commitment to work with UA closely so that the magnitude of the success becomes bigger. 

Discover Dominica Authority CEO speaks

Marva Williams, chief executive officer of Discover Dominica Authority said the new flight path gives visitors from the tourism market in the US tri-state region (New Jersey, New York and Connecticut) a smooth experience to reach Dominica. The organisation expects that more American tourists who seek to experience natural attractions in the Caribbean will make use of the opportunity to visit Dominica. 

A special day for Pilot Peter Codrington

February 15 also marked a special occasion for Peter Codrington, a Dominican-born pilot who flew the inaugural flight between New Jersey and Dominica. He was happy, excited and proud to be a part of history and called the occasion big – for his country, himself and the carrier. It was also the first time that Codrington landed a plane on the Nature Island. 

Extension of runway at Douglas-Charles

The extension of the runway at Douglas-Charles played a major role in starting the new service. The upgraded runway was made operational in September last year and it is now 1,936 metres in length which allows bigger aircraft to land. 

UA is the second airline connecting Dominica to the US, with American Airlines being the first. It has been operating non-stop flights between the Caribbean island-nation and Miami with their Embraer E175 jets. While UA’s 737 is not the biggest plane that has landed in Dominica, it is certainly among the top ones. Dominica mostly has regional air connectivity which is facilitated by airlines such as LIAT20, Caribbean Airlines, WINAIR, and others.