Minister of Finance and the Public Service Audley Shaw (centre), greets executive director of the Maryland Aviation Administration, Timothy Campbell (second left), at a dinner hosted by Air Jamaica for members of the Caribbean diaspora in the Maryland-Virginia-Washington, DC area. Also seen here are Air Jamaica executives, from left, Bruce Nobles, president and chief executive officer; Claire Robinson, manager for the Midwest region; and Will Rogers, vice resident. The dinner was held at the Westin Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland, December 5.
With only three more months to find an investor willing to buy an airline, Air Jamaica boss Bruce Nobles was back on the road this week to drum up interest in the carrier.
His latest known stop was in New York.
Jamaica is selling majority control of the loss-making airline that has become an albatross on taxpayers, but intends to maintain a minority share.
Audley Shaw on a stop in Baltimore, Maryland, December 5, said the deal to be arranged will include retention of the Air Jamaica brand.
The provision is included in the divestment documentation.
The airline has flown Baltimore for 27 years.
"Whether the partner is another airline, a hotel company or even a financial company, the goals must be in sync - maintain the brand and its value in the marketplace, and put the airline in a solid financial position," Nobles reinforced in a presentation in New York on Monday.
The government has not said whether it has any serious offers for the carrier, but has maintained that the sale should be finalised by March 2009.
Its adviser on the divestment is the International Financial Corporation, a World Bank affiliate which does business worldwide with people who command substantial capital.
Nobles stressed that Air J was seeking a partner that could pour cash into the operation, whose accumulated losses top US$1.2 billion.
"It must be a strategic partnership," he said during discussions with groupings that included customers of the airline, the travel industry and media.
Nobles also said Air Jamaica was committed to serving the needs of the Jamaican community.
He described Air Jamaica as a 'large and important component' of Jamaica's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), providing 2,000 jobs and bringing 50 per cent of the visitors to the island.
No new destinations
Nobles said the airline does not have any immediate plans to start flying to new destinations and was currently evaluating which of its current gateways "make sense and which do not from an economic and passenger demand standpoint".
The airline last year operated on 19 routes, one less than 2006, and racked up 3,680 available seat miles.
Total revenue reached US$439 million, with passenger traffic contributing US$331 million.
To drum up business in a depressed travel market this winter, the airline has been rolling out a number of fare sales.
The airline has also become more conscientious about being on-time, according to Nobles, who said in the the past three months Air Jamaica has improved its on-time performance.
Last year, Air Jamaica lost US$170 million, and this year it is projected to lose another US$200 million.
Said Shaw on the Baltimore visit where Air J held a dinner for flyers: "I want to give you loyal Air Jamaica customers and the people of Jamaica the assurance that the decision of the Government to divest Air Jamaica includes World Bank assistance for the process of putting the airline on a sound footing, once and for all."
- Gleaner and CMC reports