As yet another hurricane makes its way through the Caribbean, airlines operating within 
the Region have announced a series of cancellations and delays in flights owing to the threat posed by the storm.
This is as Hurricane Maria on Monday afternoon intensified into a Category Four storm and barrelled towards Dominica in the Leeward Islands.
As a result, both Caribbean Airlines (CAL) and LIAT Ltd on Monday issued official releases notifying customers of the halt in operations for a number of days.
CAL on Monday indicated that flights BW434, BW435, BW412, BW413, and BW459 departing from Port of Spain to St Lucia, St Lucia to Port of Spain, Port of Spain to Barbados, Barbados to Port of Spain and Kingston to Antigua respectively, have all been cancelled.
The airline said that it was permitting affected customers to rebook their reservations without penalty, subject to the following conditions:
- Passengers must have a confirmed ticket issued before September 18
- Passengers must book to travel during the period September 18-20
- Changes on the routing (origin/destination) of the original booking are not permitted
Moreover, CAL said it would not be responsible for arrangements to/from alternative airports or for any hotel/overnight expenses incurred.
The airline said that full refunds (without penalty) would be allowed on tickets issued for travel between September 18 and 20, 2017 only, with the last date for requesting refund being September 27.
Customers are advised to visit www.caribbean?airlines.com to check their flight status before going to the airport or call the Caribbean Airlines call centres for further details.
Meanwhile, LIAT issued a list of flights slated for today which will no longer be able to take off. That carrier noted that passengers who have been booked on these flights will be allowed to rebook and have all change fees and fare differences waived only if they do so on or before September 22.
Moreover, LIAT warned that passengers who decide to travel but are unable to complete their journey owing to disruption caused by weather conditions will not be provided with meals, transportation and hotel accommodation. Passengers with onward connections are advised to contact the respective regional and international carriers.
Persons are asked to continue to monitor their local media and weather reports. LIAT will continue to monitor the progress of this weather system and will issue further updates and advisories via its website (www.liat.com) and social media platforms.
Both of the regional carriers expressed regret over the inconvenience caused by the delays/cancellations as a result of the passage of Tropical Depression Fifteen. On that note, they are asking all passengers to kindly adhere to the information published as they both continue to monitor the conditions brought on by this year’s hurricane season.
