LIAT 2020 touches down Dominica with inaugural flight on Thursday

Dominica welcomed LIAT 2020 at Douglas-Charles Airport on Thursday, marking the revival of the Caribbean’s leading airline.

The landmark achievement by the airlines marks another milestone for them to strengthen their regional connectivity after being shut down for more than 7 months.

The inaugural flight took off from Antigua and upon its arrival, it was welcomed by Fidel Grant, the Minister of Utilities, Public Works, and Digital Economy. He was accompanied by Chief Financial Officer for LIAT 2020, Conley Ibrahim the Director of Operations of LIAT 2020, and several other members.

Upon this historic arrival of the airlines, Minister Grant addressed it as a moment to celebrate the re-establishment of the aircraft.

“LIAT 2020 marks a new chapter in Caribbean aviation, one that promises to improve regional integration, boost economic activity, and provide a key link for travelers between Caribbean islands,” the minister said during his address.

The celebrated airline was notably shut down in the month of January this year, however, the government of Antigua and Barbuda did its best to bring the Caribbean’s gem airline back to the skies. After several meetings with key stakeholders, the government finally bought the new aircraft with the Caribbean Development Bank.

The airline went for its trial operations in May 2024 and it further received its Air Operators Certificate in June 2024. The inauguration of the flight was then announced for August and the flight took it to the skies with its first flight to Saint Lucia.

Notably, the flight is now being run by a partnership with the government of Antigua and Barbuda and the Nigerian Airline Air-Peace Limited.

Now that it has started its operation in Dominica, it will start operating at a cost of US$99 plus tax and will service destinations connecting to Dominica, including Saint Lucia and Antigua and Barbuda.

However, as the airlines progresses in future, it will be adding more destinations in the list. The flight will most probably hit the wider Caribbean market including Barbados, Grenada, Dominica and St. Kitts & Nevis in coming September.

On the other hand, the chief executive officer Hafsaf Abdulsalam hinted that there are further plans to add new destinations including, Trinidad & Tobago and Guyana, and will also focus on other destinations including Panama, Miami, and the British Virgin Islands.