Turks & Caicos Celebrates 30 Years of American Airlines

By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, December 21, 2022 – Thirty years ago, in 1992 American Airlines became the first major commercial airline to operate daily flights to Providenciales, Turks and Caicos in a partnership formed thanks to the pooling of funds by tourism interests at the time.  That selfless decision became the launch pad for an international airport, an enviable economy and opened the door to what is now one of the most sought after tourism destinations in the Caribbean region.

Chloe Zimmerman is a longtime tourism player and owner of Marco Travel; when was asked who were the major tourism investors that were instrumental in bringing the company into the TCI back then, she trumpeted: Everyone!

“… the money was put by everybody, mainly locals participated it was amazing,” said Zimmerman.

In recognition of this 30 years of partnership, The Turks and Caicos Islands Airports Authority commemorated those first flights in a ceremony on Sunday. Attending the thank you event were Anya Williams, TCI Deputy Governor; Stacy Cox, TCHTA Chief Executive and the Board’s president, Trevor Musgrove along with staff of the TCI Tourist Board and TCIAA and Arlington Musgrove, Minister of Immigration and Borders Services with responsibility for airports.

“Yesterday, we celebrated with American Airlines as they marked 30 years of service to Turks and Caicos. This coincides with the start of the TCHTA, as we commemorate 30 years as an association. Our 1992 Board of Directors played an integral part in finalizing this historical collaboration, and the Turks and Caicos community rallied as a whole to make it happen.

AA has been an exceptional partner to these islands and we look forward to another 30 years with added routes and continued excellence in service,” informed the TCHTA on its Facebook page on Monday December 19.

This past July, a formal meeting was held with government executives from the Ministry of Tourism.  It was during that session, that Josephine Connolly, Minister of Tourism said, “American Airlines has been servicing this destination for almost 30 years and as our leading airline partner, with direct flights from seven United States cities to Providenciales (PLS), we look forward to more routes, connecting travellers to our shores. To do so, teamwork and a true partnership is what we will continue to strive towards, to ensure that we remain the number one destination in the Caribbean, if not the world.”

Today, American Airlines is responsible for linking the Turks and Caicos Islands to over half a dozen, major US cities including:  Miami, Boston, Charlotte, Dallas, Chicago, New York and Philadelphia.