Air Canada Halts Service to Cuba After US Pressure Cuts Off Fuel

Cuba risks losing vital airline service as aviation fuel prepares to run out; As a result, at least one major carrier, Air Canada, is suspending all service to the island.

The Communist government has warned international airlines that they will be unable to refuel at Havana’s main airport for next month after Donald Trump threatened tariffs on any country supplying oil to Cuba. A-1 jet fuel will no longer be available at Jose Marti International Airport starting Tuesday, March 11, the Federal Aviation Administration said Sunday.

Canada’s flagship airline said Monday it was suspending flights to Cuba effective immediately but plans to send empty planes to bring back about 3,000 vacationers currently on the island. The Montreal-based company said in a statement that Air Canada “will continue to monitor the situation to determine the appropriate resumption of normal service” at a later date. Two routes to Varadero and Cayo Coco are tentatively scheduled to restart in May.

The other two carriers in the Nordic country, WestJet Airlines Ltd. and Transat AT Inc. said they expect to continue their flights as usual for now, carrying enough fuel for return trips or adding technical stops to their schedules. All three airlines said they were introducing special flexibility measures for customers with upcoming trips to the Caribbean island.

Cuba’s latest conflict with the United States, which wants the regime in Havana to fall, risks permanently damaging its important tourism industry, a vital source of foreign currency for the cash-strapped country. It began closing resorts over the weekend and consolidating visitors into fewer hotels in the hope of generating as much foreign revenue as possible during the high season.

The U.S. pressure campaign also led an allied country to cut off a key escape valve for migrants on Sunday, when Nicaragua changed immigration rules to prevent visa-free entry for Cuban citizens. In the last decade, almost one in five people living in Cuba have fled the island due to the worsening economic crisis.

Another ally, Russia, said that the fuel supply situation in Cuba had reached a critical point. However, according to the Interfax news agency, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not specify whether Moscow plans to supply oil products to the island.

Russia’s largest airline, Aeroflot, canceled its commercial flight to Cuba on Monday and instead sent empty planes to pick up stranded tourists, Russia’s tour operators association said in a statement. It was stated that Aeroflot’s flights to Cuba were suspended until the end of March. The group estimates that around 4,500 Russians are currently holidaying on the island.

Cuba is served by US, Canadian, European and Latin American airlines. During previous periods of economic hardship, including the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, airlines had adjusted schedules to allow refueling in Mexico or the Dominican Republic.

In addition to tourists spending money at state-run hotels, those traveling by plane often bring much-needed supplies to Cuba. Food, medicine and consumer goods are often imported by so-called mules that load their luggage on commercial flights.

Washington effectively cut off fuel shipments to Cuba from its top ally, Venezuela, in early January when it suspended socialist leader Nicolas Maduro for trial in New York on narco-terrorism charges.

Trump’s tariff threat appeared to be aimed directly at oil-supplying Mexico. President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed Monday that her government had suspended oil exports but promised to continue providing humanitarian aid. On Sunday, two navy ships loaded with more than 800 tons of food and personal hygiene products were dispatched.

The government in Havana said last week it was open to talks with the United States but insisted its one-party government system was not ready for talks.

On Friday night, he announced emergency measures to deal with the crisis, which include reducing public transport routes, shortening the working week from Monday to Thursday and moving some university courses online.

The state also plans to accelerate plans to transition to greater use of solar energy. Cuba’s national grid suffered half a dozen complete collapses within a year as conditions on the island deteriorated.

With the help of Dina Khrennikova.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to the text.