REGIONAL airline, LIAT, is currently engaged in discussions with regional governments to put in place new arrangements, which provide a basis for sharing the burden amongst all the countries currently benefitting from the airline’s services.

This is according to Chief Executive Officer Julie Reifer-Jones, who in a release on Friday responded to a news item which appeared in the Trinidad and Tobago media that the airline had financial resources to keep its operations afloat only for the next 10 days.
Noting that the airline will continue flying across the Region, the CEO reassured passengers that the airline will continue to operate in a safe and efficient manner to provide connectivity and service to the Region.

She said that LIAT “is in a challenging financial situation,” and that the airline has been flying through the Region with support from its principal shareholders, those being the Governments of Barbados, Antigua & Barbuda, St. Vincent & the Grenadines and Dominica.
Reifer-Jones noted, however, that the airline has also been operating to destinations where there has been no support from governments and authorities to ensure that critical connectivity remains.

Reifer-Jones noted that all stakeholders, whether labour, suppliers or financiers, will be called upon to make adjustments aimed at achieving a viable airline operation.
The airline has already been working to improve its on-time performance, and she indicated that 83% of the airline’s flights were on time in 2018.
LIAT is currently undergoing a restructuring exercise; this is expected to improve the airline’s operations, as the company moves to build a sustainable model, the entity said on Friday.

LIAT currently operates 491 flights weekly across its network of 15 destinations, using its modern fleet of ATR 42 and ATR 72 aircraft which land and depart within a regional network of 15 destinations.