Today Maya Island Air became Belize’s first regional airline when it inaugurated its direct flights to Cancun and Guatemala City. It is a giant leap for what was a small local airline. But more than that, it presents an opportunity for a comeback from a sagging tourism industry. Our seven news team flew to Guatemala last night for a cocktail reception and returned on the inaugural flight this morning. Keith Swift has the story.

Keith Swift Reporting,
The flight from Guatemala City to Belize took 50 minutes. We flew in on one of these three new ATRs 72 turbo airplanes. Initially there will be daily flights to Cancun and Guatemala City.

Dr. Louis Zabaneh, CEO – Maya Island Air Regional
“We have right now one flight at 5:15 in the evening departing to Belize and then going on to Cancun departing Belize at 6:50 in the evening. When conditions permit in Honduras, we are going to have a second flight so that people from Guatemala will have the option to go to Belize, Honduras, or Cancun with our flight. So from all the bookings that we’ve had so far, the prospects are very good.”

The flight attendants and pilots are all from Spain but within a year they will be replaced with Belizeans.

Dr. Louis Zabaneh,
“What we have in the first year is an agreement with Swift Air from Spain which is a highly reputable firm, airline company in Spain. They do service to the United Nations, to the government of Spain, DHL, Fed Ex, and they have very professional people. So in the first we are going to be upgrading our people; pilots, flight attendants, engineers. So right now we have a group of 22 of them in Belize and as you saw on our flights today, we have our own Belizean pilots that have started to familiarize themselves with the aircraft and we have a program for all of them so that at the end of this year we hope to have a Belizean crew.”

At today’s launch there were government Ministers, the former Prime Minister, a former Minister turn airline consultant, and Prime Minister Dean Barrow who is hoping that Maya’s flight’s to new heights – will do the same for the sagging tourism industry.

Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
“This is a good day for Maya Island Air, this is a good day for tourism, and a good day for Belize. We’ve taken an extremely serious hit in the stay over segment. Thus it is precisely where it is most necessary that this venture being launched today will help. The possibilities that stem now from the connections with Mexico, Central America, Latin America and ultimately Europe via Latin America are wonderfully exciting.

What it is going to do for tourism or what potential it is going to do for tourism is absolutely exciting, absolutely wonderful and I am saying that it could not have come at a better time.”

Hon. Manuel Heredia Jr., Minister of Tourism
“I know personally that we have been getting Europeans through Guatemala into Belize. With Maya Island Regional being over here, it will facilitate that process and hopefully it will bring more tourists to Belize.”

But for Belize’s Ambassador to Guatemala Fred Martinez, the benefit will be more than financial.

Fred Martinez, Ambassador to Guatemala
“One more step in the confidential building measures where we have commercial air links between the two cities, bringing people to get to know each other. The regular citizen in Guatemala couldn’t care less about the Guatemalan claim over Belize. It is a group of people, politicians and lawyers that keep putting it up on the public forefront, because it is in their constitution and it can’t be moved, but for the regular citizen of Guatemala, they love visiting Belize, those who have been there, and so this is one more opportunity for Belizeans to get to know Guatemalans and Guatemalans to get to know Belizeans.”

But it won’t come cheap. A flight to both routes will cost upwards of three hundred U.S. dollars. Still CEO Dr. Louis Zabaneh doesn’t believe cost will be a deterrent.

Dr. Louis Zabaneh,
“If you look at what the prices to fly alternatively to come here have been in the region of 650 to 700 dollars and now after the promotional month, we are talking about 375 dollars to come to Guatemala in less than an hour. People want convenience, they want connectivity. With this effort that we have made here, we will be able to have a direct flight in less than an hour to Belize when the options would have been three and a half to four hours the best. So the convenience is what really people like in this new service that we are offering.”

A massive investment and Maya expects massive returns.

Keith Swift,
Other airlines tried this route and had to quit it because there wasn’t the demand.

Dr. Louis Zabaneh,
“Yes. What is critical is that we have on time service, we have safe reliable service, and that is what we have worked so hard domestically with Maya in Belize. People from among the region really admire our airline industry in Belize, both Maya and Tropic. We have 12 flights a day each to San Pedro for example and with that kind of background, we can do that for the regional and people will join us and give us the business.”

And that’s why Maya Island Air Regional has its fingers crossed.

Reservations can be made online at http//www.mayaislandair.com. As we told you – the flight from Guatemala to Belize City was 50 minutes. So too was the flight from Cancun. And tune in tomorrow because that’s when we’ll take you inside Guatemala City.