Tourism Minister, Senator Robert Tonge, has announced that two new airlines could soon be servicing Dominica.
He was speaking at a Citizenship By Investment-awareness related town hall meeting in Cottage on Sunday, April 2, 2017.
“Hopefully soon we will have two new airlines servicing Dominica, one of them is called TIA out of Barbados and St Lucia which will start sometime in October…to ensure that more persons can come to Dominica when they want to come and also more affordable,” he said.
He did not name the other airline.
Tonge stated that coming to Dominica is still a challenge, however, the relevant officials are continuing to work to address this issue.
“And as you know sometimes it can be very challenging to get to Dominica but we are doing a lot to speak with all the different airlines and encourage them to provide better service and come to Dominica,” he stated.
The Tourism Minister mentioned that Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit back in June 2016 had to speak to regional airline LIAT to “Say to them you know something, we need better service from you.”
He said that the Government is still in talks with LIAT.
“And since then I must say LIAT has done a much better job and we continue to speak with them on a day to day basis to ensure that persons who want to come to Dominica, you as individuals, residents, and also the visitors can come to Dominica the same day,” he remarked.
Lord help us….
We shall see if TIA does come, they shut down last year and re-started again, so will they come or not ? a St.Lucia based airline with Barbadian registered aircraft, will not go down with ECCAA which is responsible for the Eastern Caribbean.
I have my serious doubts, I proposed to Minister Tonge to take charge and operate some routes that would be commercialized by Dominica, destination, frequency, fares and times, and hire out the operation to another operator.
This would guarantee new air access and air connectivity by having flights coordinated with foreign airlines at the other \”gateway\” destinations that that can be used to get to Dominica without going through Barbados, Antigua or St. Maarten.
Leave the commercial operations to an airline, and
As Dominica should be in charge and not leave the frequencies, times and prices to some airline that may or not may not be operational and then for how long ? whose best interest will be served ?
Its a roll of the…
I wonder what airlines are they talking about…so many has come and left …..and LIAT is still there….
will continue to wait while I am at the mercy of LIAT. !!.
I sincerely believe if you folks stop responding to Poo Poo like this, these corrupt leaders would cease to talk this sot on DNO.
Robbie is the worse minister of tourism ever in Dominica, possibly the caribbean. Ian was 50 times better than you. Every time SKERRIT tell him to speak, he says yes sir, and sounds like a fool. you know very well that no new airline will be servicing Dominica. stop repeating what larry love say. you know he is not credible.
why dont the government provide their own airline?
am tired of all these back and forth.
we in 2017 not 2001…
I often find myself sitting at the airport waiting for Liat to arrive. Is this one of the airlines he is talking about ?
keep up the good work robbie
I realise that there have been a number of announcement like this, so scepticism isn’t unwarranted. But it’s not easy to get airlines to serve a destination with a small number of passengers. Large airlines can’t be bothered, which means we have to work with small startup airlines which can be a bit… well, flighty. I don’t think ECCAA makes things any easier, either.
Either way, all you sound like Robbie is just some stupid guy who sits around lying all day. Not so. I fully believe he’s doing his best to get the best transportation connections he can and that our situation makes it a genuinely challenging task.
Steve his intellect is not at question at all. I know Robbie is a bright guy. I am not buying anything from this administration. We were promised direct jet service from Miami International a few moons ago. In my world, things are either done, or they’re not done.
Oh dear. What airlines do or not do has never nor will ever be influenced by Dominica insurance salesmen. And TIA’s Cessnas are not really going to get us all too excited are they ?
It’s not as exciting as a nonstop flight from FLL, no, but if it’s a affordable connection timed to allow people to get to Dominica in one day, then that actually would be exciting, at least to people like me who make the trip often.
You are absolutely right. He is indeed doing an amazing job getting visitors and planes here. There are just so many of them these days !
I love him too. I’ve lived here for over twenty five years and am so happy the island is exactly as it was way back then. It’s great that we have so many people in jobs who manage to keep the island just how it always has been. They are worth every dollar of our tax money. Keep it up !
Robbie I would give you one BIG
Callot behind your D..head Just singing
The same old song as usual
OMG!! I can’t stop laughing that one.. I can imagine the callot…a BIG one indeed.
When and only when there is Sufficient Airlift (bums on seats) to fill aircraft,then you will have competition on the route to Dominica.We have insufficient overnight visitors to encourage air lines.
We still in April fools week.
Skerro Air funded by CBI.
Who is this guy fooling? YO WAKE UP AND SMELL THE CACO !! “You can fool some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all the people all of the time” Abe Lincoln.
We have ” in excess of almost half” an airline coming to Dominica. A direct result of the CBI. Next week the Roseau and Portsmouth enhancement project will begin. The promenade will be completed i earnest after Creole Jazz Fest.
The Canfield Tourist Village will be opening in earnest after Easter.”In excess of almost ” 4 Cruise ships will be at the Canefield Tourist Village. Two of the Ships will be brand new canoes coming from the Kalinago territory. The other ship will be one Shaloop from Balaw Town.
The farmers boats will be docked ” in earnest” at the Morocco Hotel pier in Portsmouth.
The Post Office Building will be completed ” in earnest ” after Good Friday
Too many April Fool’s joke for one post.
Tonge, if you want the airfare to Dominica to be affordable, I suggest Dominica and the other islands reduce or eliminate the various punishing taxes and fees off the tickets.
As long as these taxes and fees remain as they are, travelling to the islands can never be affordable.
Yes, and that separate charge for departure tax. What is the matter with you guys. You are supposed to welcome visitors here, not piss them off. That is bad P.R. First you let them in, with some reluctance and then they must first pay before you allow them to leave again, like some kind of ransom. Put that in the ticket price, like everywhere else, at least that does not make it so obvious and is more convenient for the traveller. The way is is organised now it looks like somebody got a concession to make some cash on the side. How is that money accounted for, for instance? Do government employees pay it also when they are travelling? A very negative experience. Change it.
Tongue, in the English language there is a word; a simple one termed nonsense. Perhaps you cannot understand the word nonsense, or foolishness in terms of speaking. So in a language I know you can understand I would like to tell you; you are talking sot! As a patios man should have no difficulty understand that.
Dominica’s problem where it pertains to good access in and out of Dominica by air for the tourists; even Caribbean tourists is an International Airport. You can spew as much fart as you wish, without an International Airport no amount of “sot” you talk will make a difference.
You are just blowing lukewarm gas. Your garbage has no substance, we read in Rev 3:16 ” So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. That applies to individual people, and governments too!
Talking fart and garbage is far different from taking constructive actions, and do something constructive like building an Intentional Airport. Only when…
I’m hopeful as well. We need a replacement for LIAT. I’m rather fed up of their services.
Replacing LIAT will not help the situation: Even if Humming Bird did not help, nothing equivalent to LIAT is going to make a difference at all!
People like Tongue simply like to come out once in a while and talk nonsense, given their gullible supporters false hope, while ignoring the real facts of the matter. You can bring a thousand more LIAT, and a thousand more as Tongue proposed, which might be a lie anyway, that is not going to change anything.
Local Dominicans residing in the Diaspora, as well as none nationals who would like to visit Dominica will continue to experience the same problem overnight in Antigua, Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, St. Vincent, and struggle to get to Dominica. The problem is not altogether LIAT. Replacing LIAT with another rendition of LIAT is not going to change anything.
It’s almost election time, so that guy is out there talking sot!
Every April, Robbie and the boys come up with a good joke. This is just the latest one.
All you supposedly working on behalf of the Dominican people, but everything is a “Big Secret.” What’s the point of adding another “Two by four airline,” with limited seating capacity that lacks code-sharing with connecting flights in other islands, not to mention astronomical ticket prices that comes with such a fragmented operation? No matter what year or time we’re in, you guys are still progressing backwards ever and forward never.
Hope is not one of the pre election airline that is going ti be coming from Fort Lauderdale straight to Dominica
DNO do you remember the Venezuelan Airline Ian Douglas promised us.
When is the man going to tell us about the MOU between Dominica and the CBI fund for the construction of an underground railway system. Engineering design already contracted to Georgia and Chris Engineering Limited.
Trains already in fabrication at the Canefield Industrial Site. In fact the wheels are already retrofitted on the 20 foot containers and Chinese will be installingvplastic windows in the containers
Thanks to Lennox Linton Dominica will be the first in commuter rail in the Easter Caribbean
Garcon, Robbie just saying what his boss man tell him to say. You have a better chance of winning lotto, before that happens.
Every time election is going to be called, There is a new airline arriving , Check it out people,
Well if Dominicans haven’t caught on to THAT scam by now…something is TRULY wrong with us.
Robbie what you said and nothing is the same. Your boss spent upwards of $140,000,000.00 on Charles Douglas and placed in at the mouth of the Marigot River. Not to mention the additional $8,000,000.00 that was given to LIAT by the Prime Minister. Added altogether, we could have built a modern airport with all those wasted monies.
While you’re at it, can you tell us where’s the secret location that the PM has identified for the new airport and who are the men and women conducting the environmental impact assessment survey on the island and what engineering firm they representing and from what country?
You can’t, because this is just another empty election ploy. Now you too in on the secret airline. Two airlines maybe coming to Dominica, but you only name one.
Boy Robbie, you not easy boy.
Gimme a freaking break Robbie. The PM had to speak to LIAT my dam foot!!! As if people that spending their money could not/cannot do that.
Tell us more about TIA please sir.
And by the way who you think you fooling with this –
“Hopefully soon we will have two new airlines servicing Dominica, one of them is called TIA out of Barbados and St Lucia which will start sometime in October…to ensure that more persons can come to Dominica when they want to come and also more affordable,” he said.
So he name one and can’t name the other ? Well let me name it for him since is fake news we like. Come June 2, 2017 Seaborn will be running and Ross working hard trying to convince JetBlue to send a small flight like Seaborn. So finally people JetBlue coming but they waiting for Skerrit Monfared to leave or get fired by the people first
More and more lies,Tonge give up while you are ahead man.
Looking forward to TIA’s affordable rates and services. Great development Tonge.
Is it April 1st again already?
Will believe it when i see it
I remember a TIA airline operating out of Barbados but that ceased operations over 10 years ago. I now hear rumours that the operation has been resurrected and supposed to be active from 1 April. I hope it is not a joke and it is here to stay this time, ideally with movements in- & out of Canefield.
Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA) is a temporary blockage of blood flow to the brain.
So very fitting!!! LMAO!
Yet, and this is where it gets interesting, we have no international airport.
Came to the conclusion that people who support this regime are not wise
You must be dreaming!
Alas panda……..you lost it!
Skerrit made promises last election about new airlines that yet to come.
DIP still lost 3 seats in parliament!
And you support de wage freeze on public workers to.
I would rethink seeking employment at your business!!!
You soul for sale to?