Surinam Airways to expand operations in Guyana

By Devina Samaroo

Approximately four years after its return to the Guyanese market, Suriname’s National Carrier Surinam Airways has massive plans in the pipeline to further expand operations locally.
A study is being conducted to determine how best the airline can increase its presence here, including the feasibility of adding new destinations or more permanent flights in and out of Guyana.
Surinam Airways General Manager Henk Fitz-Jim during an exclusive interview with Guyana Times disclosed that the operations in Guyana have thus far been successful and therefore, it will most likely be profitable for the airlines to make further investments in the country.
Already, the airlines introduced its third weekly flight out of Guyana to Miami on Thursday last as a part of its expansion venture and it also plans to continue to gradually increase those flights.
“That is the destination we started with and people seem to be satisfied with our service and we are getting more and more business so gradually we’d wanna increase our flights to Miami,” the Manager stated.
Additionally, the airlines is exploring the possibility of adding a permanent flight to Sanford, Orlando.
“We already do seasonal flights to Sanford, Orlando, it starts again on July 1, and we’re looking into making it a permanent flight,” Fitz-Jim stated.
The company is also looking into adding some new destinations including New York, Toronto, and Atlanta.
Further, Surinam Airways also offers cargo services and there are plans to expand on this service once the demand increases.
The Manager also noted that Surinam Airways is looking into the possibility of working in collaboration with another company to help promote Guyana as a wedding destination.
Fitz-Jim represented his company on a team of investors that recently visited Guyana to explore available investment opportunities.
He noted that participating in the mission actually fits in Surinam Airways’ future plans to further expand in Guyana.
Surinam Airways re-entered Guyana’s market on April 3, 2012 when the airline’s Boeing 737 touched down at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport en route to Miami, Florida.
The airline returned after a six-year break.