Philadelphia and Baltimore were not selected in a tentative list of U.S. Cities that will see nonstop service to Havana.
The cities tentatively awarded service were Atlanta, Charlotte, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York City, Orlando, and Tampa.
Earlier this year, Frontier Airlines, which operated for a brief time from New Castle, received the OK to fly to three smaller cities in Cuba a few times a week.
“Today we take another important step toward delivering on President Obama’s promise to reengage Cuba,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “Restoring regular air service holds tremendous potential to reunite Cuban-American families and foster education and opportunities for American businesses of all sizes.”
A dozen U.S. airlines applied for the chance to operate scheduled passenger and cargo service to Havana. Collectively, the airlines applied for nearly 60 flights per day to Havana, exceeding the 20 daily flights made available by arrangement between the two governments.
A release stated that the principal objective in making its proposed selections was to maximize public benefits, including choosing airlines that offered and could maintain the best ongoing service between the U.S. and Havana.
The airlines receiving the tentative awards are Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines, and United Airlines. The carriers are the nation’s largest airlines.
The service tentatively awarded to American should allow connecting fights from Philadelphia International Airport to its hubs in Miami and Charlotte.
This new arrangement will increase opportunities for visits for travelers that fall under one of 12 categories authorized by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. Tourism is not permitted, although the categories are broad enough to allow most passengers to make trips.
DOT expects to reach a final decision later this summer.
A fact sheet can be found here.
