JAGS Aviation introduces Lethem flights with 10% reduction in airfare

…looking to expand operations across Caribbean, South America

Local airline, JAGS Aviation Inc, on Wednesday introduced a new service to Lethem in Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) with a 10 per cent reduction in airfares as part of efforts to make travel more economical and accessible for Guyanese. “We’ve taken the initiative to offer the services to Lethem at 10 per cent less than the current market value so that we can make it easier and more accessible for our people to travel,” Reservation Manager at JAGS, Natasha Smith, told reporters. Operated by BK International, JAGS Aviation is offering flights from the Bradley Hangar at the Eugene F. Correia International Airport at Ogle, East Coast Demerara (ECD), to Lethem at $58,800 one-way and $82,800 round trip.

The Ogle-Lethem Scheduled Service is four days per week, with two daily flights on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, departing Ogle at 07:00h and 15:30h, and Lethem at 09:00h and 17:00h. There will only be one flight on Sunday, which leaves Ogle at 13:00h and Lethem at 14:30h. This new service will be flown on the newly acquired HAL 228 Turboprop – a modern, air-conditioned aircraft configured for 19 passengers. Additionally, the airline has the capacity to draw on other aircraft across its fleet to supplement capacity on high-demand days.
“This route has been a long time in development, and we are proud to finally bring a modem, dependable, and affordable scheduled service to the Ogle-Lethem corridor,” Accountable Manager of JAGS Aviation, Miguel Benjamin, noted. “We built this schedule around the needs of the travelling public and the businesses that depend on this corridor, and we intend to back it with the same safety standards and personalised service that define everything we do.”

Cost-effective & accessible

Meanwhile, JAGS Aviation is also reassessing it’s local pricing to identify further opportunities to make air travel more cost-effective and accessible for the people of Guyana. This price reduction by JAGS comes days after President Dr Irfaan Ali expressed disappointment in the local aviation sector over the high domestic airfares, which he says is further burdening citizens and businesses in hinterland locations and driving up costs. “We are very disappointed in the aviation sector, because we have not been able to get the corresponding returns, on the investments that we are making, in prices [for domestic flights],” the President stated during a public meeting on August 5 at the Santa Rosa Secondary School in the Moruca Sub-District, Region One (Barima-Waini). Back in November 2025, President Ali had pointed out that the local aviation sector is financially capable of lowering domestic air transport fares to hinterland locations by as much as 15 per cent.
Over the past year, the Guyana Government has invested billions of dollars to upgrade major hinterland airstrips to enhance travel to and from hinterland communities across the country. Following the commissioning of these upgraded infrastructures earlier this year, nearly all the domestic airlines, including JAGS, had dropped their rates for flights to those locations with new airstrips.

In fact, JAGS had slashed the airfares to Aishalton, Region Nine and Paramakatoi in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni). However, the local operators were subsequently forced to increased their airfares back in April after aviation fuel prices skyrocketed on the global market due to the Middle East conflict.

Expansion
Nevertheless, BK International/JAGS Aviation has indicated that the Ogle-Lethem launch is the first step in a broader expansion of the domestic airline’s route network. The company is preparing to extend scheduled and charter service to Boa Vista, Brazil; Paramaribo, Suriname; and Belém, Brazil, with further routes planned to French Guiana and Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela. JAGS is also looking beyond South America to expand its footprint into the Caribbean, where it intends to establish a hub in St Kits and Nevis. The hub would provide reliable inter-island transport for residents and support the wider tourism industry across the islands. “We are very big on trying to ensure that everybody is comfortable, so that everyone has the right and access to travel within our own region and even outside. JAGS is considering all of these things to ensure that everybody is able to [travel regionally],” Smith explained on Wednesday. With a diverse fleet including the HAL 228 Turboprop as well as a Tecnam P2012 Cessna Caravan C208, Britten-Norman Islander BN2A, Bell 206 Helicopter, and PZL M28 Skytruck, Smith emphasised that JAGS is well positioned to service the growing demand of the local aviation sector. “Right now, on the aerodrome, JAGS has the most diverse fleet… so, we have more options. We can also look at our prices; it can be lowered depending on what you need. We work with the people,” the JAGS Manager stated. JAGS Aviation, a member of the BK Group of Companies, offers private and charter flights scheduled service, tourist flights, air ambulance services, and helicopter transport.