Cayman Airways reveals new aircraft
(CNS Business): Cayman Airways expanded their aircraft fleet on Friday with a new turboprop plane that will exclusively service between Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac. The 34-seater Saab 340B+ aircraft will replace the 30-seat Embraer E120 service, which is currently operated under a wet-lease arrangement with InterCaribbean Airlines.
Government and airline officials and guests gathered at the Owen Roberts International Airport to watch the arrival of the aircraft and tour the plane.
Philip Rankin, Cayman Airways Board Chair
Cayman Airways Chairman, Philip Rankin, told CNS Business that the Twin Otters will continue to run between all three islands but not as frequently. He explained the new aircraft is initially being dry leased from a UK-based company called Montrose Global. Although airport officials would not release the costs behind this deal, Rankin revealed that Cayman Airways hopes to buy the plane out right in the next six months.
The aircraft’s official christening will take place for its inaugural scheduled flight from Cayman Brac to Grand Cayman sometime in September.
Watch the CNS Business video report to learn more.
Category: Featured, Local Business, Stay-over tourism, Tourism, Transport
The new turboprop plane could be used to fly dive enthusists who visit Grand Cayman during the time of the new port/ cruise pier to Little Cayman and Brac to allow them to enjoy our new diving mecca.
Let the port and dock proceed.
To end up with two different planes to service the sister islands does not seem to make economic sense. I challenge the CAL board to produce some documentation showing the Rate of Return they expect on the new Brac-only & LilCay planes plan vs a LilCay & Brac plane plan.
(Even the jet, as inneficient as that is for short hauls, can be used for other routes. One plane for LilCay from Grand and a different one for Brach from Grand just seems to be doubling your maintenance and parts problems/costs without doubling your capabilities.)
Why do politicians get so excited about new bought equipment? Whether it’s a bulldoozer, airplane or a paver they just gotta climb all over it, even if they can hardly make it up the ladder.
I don’t know how old this 340B is but the type as a whole went out of production 1998. To give you an idea of the general age there are three of these aircraft currently sitting at one UK regional airport being parted out after reaching the end of their useful lives. As for CAL buying it? That makes about as much sense as the decision to buy the three near end-of-life 737s. Heck of a way to run an airline?
This is not a new aircraft, it was first delivered to Mesaba Airline in June 1997 operated by them until October 2008. Then it was operated by Vincent Airlines Australia from 2008 until 2012 then it has been stored by a US banks since Aug ust 2014. That make this plane 18 years old.
It’s new to CAL that’s all they are saying you morons!!
The point being made by everyone here is that this is an old, inefficient aircraft to go with the rest of an old, inefficient fleet. Added to that, these are noisy, uncomfortable aircraft. And they are old. Very old. That is a safety issue. Perhaps if the successive incompetent governments (that have more through luck than intelligence kept these islands functioning) had properly managed this country there would be money to have a modern, efficient airline, which is far more important to the overall prosperity of these Islands than a filthy turtle farm or the vote buying mechanism (with no oversight) that the NBF was. Which is nothing to say about the $2million wasted with the Chinese on the dock deal, which was no doubt pursued because of the XXXXXX. Oh, and a half built school. When will this place wake up? Probably never…..
To describe the airplane as a new one is a huge stretch of CAL and Governments fertile imagination. This old plane is probably more than 20 years old.
And behold Moses conjured up an aluminum chariot to carry God’s chosen people to and from the Promised Land. But the people still complained because there was only a porta-potty on board and the overhead bins were too small.
So Moses said unto his flock “Lo, the jet service shall continue no matter the cost!”
And the people rejoiced and they followed him to the supermarket where bread loaves and sardines were freely distributed to one and all. At normally inflated Brac retail prices……
This noisy rust-bucket ain’t new. They stopped making these in 1998.