ST.
CROIX, U.S. Virgin Islands, Dec. 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Seaborne
Airlines announced today that it has reached agreement with the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to relocate corporate headquarters from St.
Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands to San Juan, Puerto Rico, as part of a
multi-faceted arrangement. Under the agreement, Puerto Rico will take an
equity position in the airline and have two seats on the Board of
Directors of the parent company of Seaborne, Coastal International
Airways. Seaborne Airlines has committed to the creation of 400 jobs in
Puerto Rico. 150 of the 400 positions will be added in Puerto Rico in
the first quarter of 2014. This will bring total Seaborne employment in
Puerto Rico to 250 people. The move is contemplated to be complete by
March, 2014.
Seaborne
will also add a number of routes important to Puerto Rico's tourism and
export growth. On December 12, the carrier started service from San
Juan's Luis Munoz Marin International Airport to La Romana in the
Dominican Republic. On January 15, the carrier will add service from San
Juan to St. Kitts and Nevis. On February 14, Seaborne plans to begin
service from San Juan to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. On March 1, new
service from San Juan to St. Maarten, Seaborne's 16th airport will
launch. These San Juan routes are being serviced by four additional Saab
340B, 34-seat aircraft. Seaborne anticipates having a fleet of 16 Saabs
based in Puerto Rico.
No change to existing routes, or Seaplane operations in the U.S. Virgin Islands, is planned as a result of this agreement.
The agreement also calls for rebranding of Seaborne's San Juan-based operations.
"There
is little that is more important to economic development than global
air access" said Gary Foss, president and chief executive officer of
Seaborne Airlines. "This agreement will strengthen Puerto Rico's ties
with the rest of the Caribbean and position Seaborne as being Puerto
Rico's favorite airline, for connecting customers from our partner
carriers, or for customers traveling to or from Puerto Rico to
neighboring islands". Seaborne operates as an American codeshare partner
in select markets at San Juan and has interline connecting agreements
with JetBlue Airways and coming soon with Delta Air Lines.
"Seaborne's thanks go out to the leaders of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico who have made this day a reality", said Foss.
"We
happily welcome Seaborne Airlines relocation to Puerto Rico, with their
new hub of operations in San Juan, and our new partnership with Coastal
International Airways. This partnership is important for reconnecting
Puerto Rico to the Caribbean islands and also is an investment in jobs,
commerce, new business opportunities and economic development. We have,
in a year, recuperated routes that were discontinued during recent years
in the Caribbean and now we are strengthening our position as the main
hub in the region and connection to the United States", said Governor
Alejandro Garcia-Padilla.
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