The Editor, Sir:

That the new Caribbean Airlines will not be flying to Jamaica, must be a slap in the face of Caribbean and Jamaican travellers. And that we should be learning this in the peak of the holidays is certainly not funny. But to make matters worse, for more than a week I have been trying without success, to get a flight on Air Jamaica to Barbados for connection to Trinidad.

Here is an opportunity for Air Jamaica to seize market share and hold it. There are about 750 seats per week to Trinidad that must now be routed through Barbados. Air Jamaica can service the route through Montego Bay or Kingston. So Air Jamaica's problem is foresight - getting people into Barbados and persuading the other airlines to do the short hop.

Short of a more robust schedule, a larger plane would have helped in the interim. Perhaps even a wet lease could have helped and would allow one or two mid-week flights as well making a tidy profit for the effort and ostensibly, the wet lease could continue for the Cricket World Cup as well. So, since there is hardly a forum by which advice can be given to their management, I trust that your pages will pass it on.

I am, etc.,

STEAD WILLIAMS

sweng@cwjamaica.com

Via Go-Jamaica