Cayman Airways to launch direct LAX route in November

Cayman Airways will begin offering weekly non-stop flights from Grand Cayman to Los Angeles, California, as part of a renewed effort to expand the islands’ reach into the western North American market.

Tourism Minister Kenneth Bryan, who announced the new route at a press briefing on 7 July, noted that while the flight itself might not bring much profitability for the national flag carrier, the knock-on financial implications on the stayover tourism industry made it extremely worthwhile.

The flight has received approval from the US Department of Transportation, but is still awaiting final approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration. Until that is done, CAL cannot market the new route or release pricing information.

An inaugural flight date of Saturday, 5 Nov., has been suggested.

The flight between Owen Roberts International Airport and LAX will take five and a half hours, and will depart around 3:30pm on Saturdays and return at roughly the same time the following day.

That schedule is “actually perfect timing,” said Cayman Airways CEO and President Fabian Whorms. “Tourists will be able to arrive in Grand Cayman just in time to check in and have the afternoon to experience a Cayman sunset. Then, when it’s time to return, they will be able to check out at midday and arrive in time for their flight.”

New route to ‘generate millions’

Whorms said an initial conservative passenger projection estimated as many as 4,000 passengers a year would utilise the service.

“If you were to use a notional number of USD$4,000 spend per passenger as the initial direct economic impact… you are talking about $16 million a year just by operating one flight,” said Whorms. “If we can increase that to two or three flights, we are really starting to have a significant impact.”

The new route will be serviced by CAL’s Boeing 737-8 planes, which have a carrying capacity of 160 passengers. The flight is to become a permanent fixture on Cayman Airways’ itinerary.

“There are currently no direct flights between Cayman and LA, and we anticipated that, when we do open, this route will be met with competition from carriers such as American and United,” said Bryan. “We are prepared to offer competitive rates and continue to deploy Cayman Airways as a tool to develop Cayman’s tourism product.”

Bryan described the new route as a game-changer for Cayman’s residents, noting that members of the Filipino and Indian communities will be able to venture back-and-forth to their home countries faster.

“This could reduce their journey from two days to about one day, including the other connecting flights,” said Bryan.

According to the FAA, LAX is the fifth busiest airport in the US, processing an annual average of 23.7 million passengers. It serves as a main connecting airport between the US and the wider eastern Asian market.

“We have not been able to conveniently tap into that onward connectivity until now. This [new route] will get us that onward connectivity,” said Whorms.

Bryan noted that the new route will also serve as a convenient link between Hollywood and Cayman’s own burgeoning film industry.

Tourism industry welcomes announcement

The new route was welcomed by the Cayman Island Tourism Association.

CITA president Marc Langevin said in a statement, “CITA is thrilled by the CAL announcement of their new LAX direct flight and is eager to support the success of this new route.”

“At a time when other carriers have reduced routes,” he said, “it is a blessing that our destination has the ability and vision to open a direct flight to the LA market, setting a unique value proposition which will set us apart from all other Caribbean islands and compete even against the Hawaiian islands.”

He added, “We are hopeful that this extraordinary opportunity will allow us to help compensate for the loss of visitors we are still experiencing due to our remaining restrictive regulations for the unvaccinated visitors, including the children from 12 to 18 year old.”

Economic growth

Ahead of the launch, Cayman Airways is working on promoting the new route to both potential leisure and business passengers.

“The private sector here in Cayman… everybody is completely excited about this and their outreach to their counterparts within the western United States, California, Los Angeles, in particular, has expressed a very strong and great reception to the notion that we will be having a direct flight,” Whorms said.

As part of the pre-launch campaign, travel agents will be flown from LA to Cayman, where they will be hosted across a variety of accommodations in exchange for promotion.

Bryan said this was largely the brainchild of the Cayman Islands Tourism Association, whose members will look to promote the new route with their international counterparts.