BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC:

CEO Mark Darby says regional carrier LIAT is doing remarkably well in the face of the current global crisis and is even projecting record numbers for October.

"I'm not quite sure why, but our load factor this October is running at record levels," Darby told the Caribbean Media Corporation in an interview.

"It looks like we'll have the best-ever October. So, it's almost a case of crisis, what crisis?" he said.

Upbeat

The LIAT CEO did not give any further indication of the numbers but appeared very upbeat about the carrier's performance, even in the face of the continuing instability of world oil prices which swung back above US$69 per barrel this week, rebounding from a 16-month low.

With the global economy on the brink of a recession, the LIAT official is, however, concerned that the region could start feeling the effects of the slowdown in Europe and the United States later this year or early next year.

He, therefore, said despite the airline's good fortune, he was fully aware that things could change, so the airline was carefully monitoring the situation.

Still cautious

"We are making hay while the sun shines and taking advantage of good conditions at the moment, but we are just very cautious about the way the market will respond to the crisis in the banking and financial communities," he said.

"If things start to slow down, we'll just reduce the number of flights that we offer every day just to make sure that we are not flying around with too many empty seats," he added.

Earlier this year, LIAT officials reported that the airline had made a profit for the first time in 50 years after a merger of its operations with former competitor Caribbean Star gave it a monopoly in the southern Caribbean.

"It looks like we'll have the best-ever October. So, it's almost a case of crisis, what crisis?"