Inaugural direct flight of American Airlines arrives in Dominica

Dominica welcomed its first direct continental flight from the United States via American Airlines.

The flight, operated on American’s Embraer ERJ-175 aircraft, arrived at 3:21 p.m., four hours after taking off from Miami, Florida.

Onboard the inaugural flight to Dominica were 72 passengers while the turnaround flight, which departed an hour later, had 70 passengers.

The twice-weekly, year-round service will expand to three times a week on January 10.

A kick-off ceremony was held at Gate D55 in Miami airport with speeches from island officials and gift packs for passengers while a water cannon welcomed the aircraft in Dominica.

Minister of Tourism Denise Charles is elated about the milestone.

“This new service will be a game-changer for our tourism industry in Dominica, as it will allow direct access from the U.S, mainland, one of our major source markets.”

Charles also noted that the momentous event affirms the value proposition that Dominica has as a tourism destination and will contribute tremendously to attaining the target of 200,000 stayover visitors by 2025.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit thanked American Airlines for the collaboration and hoped for a long and mutually beneficial partnership.

Discussions with American had been in the works for four years even as the carrier was adding more point-to-point service throughout the Caribbean from its hub in Miami.