Turks and Caicos, September 8, 2024 – In response to the many questions we have received about a planned temporary suspension of service into South Caicos from Providenciales, we wish to share the following information:
Our DHC6 Twin Otter aircraft is being removed from service September 14th to 30th for planned schedule maintenance activities as is normally required for aircraft.
As this is the only aircraft in our fleet currently approved to operate into South Caicos, it was decided to minimize the impact by choosing what is historically the least busy period of the year, the last two weeks of September.
At the time the decision was confirmed to start the maintenance activities, only 58 passenger seats were sold out of the 1,292 available across the flight segments being cancelled. The impact on actual passenger bookings was therefore considered minimal in light of the numbers stated and the fact that there are ongoing ferry and charter services available between South Caicos and Providenciales.
Before canceling the schedule, we attempted to secure local charter flights (as we did in the past), but costs for providing charters to allow the continued operations of the service had increased to a level where it became commercially prohibitive. Likewise, we were not able to engage any foreign regional operator who could provide service for the period.
Whilst our EMB120 aircraft is capable of operating into the South Caicos airport (as we safely did from 2007 to 2017 when operations of this type ceased due to airport certification issues), we now require a special approval to operate the aircraft there due to the current airport certification status. Although numerous approval requests over the years since were not granted, we are in ongoing communication with TCIAA, (the operator of the airport) regarding obtaining the necessary approvals and await their response. We remain hopeful for a positive outcome.
For over 17 years, we have steadfastly demonstrated our commitment to our people by operating this essential air service between Providenciales and South Caicos without ever receiving any government subsidy for it. We are aware that subsidies are being paid to another carrier on the Grand Turk and Salt Cay routes.
With the announcement of the funeral of a most beloved and historic member of our community, we understand there will be an increase in demand for travel to and from South Caicos and again state that we are prepared to operate our EMB 120 Brasilia aircraft in the interim if we are granted authority to do so.
We remain committed to serving the South Caicos community and are actively working on solutions to minimize disruptions. We appreciate our customers’ understanding and look forward to resuming our regular service as soon as possible.
For any questions or concerns, please contact our customer service team at CustomerService@interCaribbean.com