74.7 F
Charlotte Amalie
Friday, March 29, 2024
HomeNewsArchivesSeaborne to Get New Planes

Seaborne to Get New Planes

 Inside the Saab 340B (Photo courtesy of Seaborne). Seaborne Airlines is ramping up the comfort level and its service between the territory and San Juan with the anticipated arrival of a Saab 340B before the end of the year. Flights aboard the 34-seat plane will start in January.

Seaborne expects to acquire two more of the same planes by March 2013.

The new planes will be used on airport to airport routes for the Seaborne Shuttle, not on the routes where planes land on water. The 340Bs will replace those used on the San Juan to St. Thomas and St. Croix routes and supplement those used between St. Thomas and St. Croix.

“The Saab is the perfect blend of comfort, speed, fuel efficiency and size,” said Seaborne President and Chief Executive Officer Omer ErSelcuk in a press release.

“While smaller aircraft tend to miss on comfort, we believe the Saab is the best aircraft to help us grow our existing and new planned markets,” he said.

The new aircraft has double the 17 seats on the Twin Otters now flying its shuttle service between airports, according to Seaborne marketing consultant Angelia Hanne.

The new planes also go faster, “325 mph,” Hanne said, adding that it will cut 15 minutes off the flight times from San Juan to St. Thomas and St. Croix.

Hanne said that with American Airlines ending flights out of San Juan to St. Thomas and St. Croix, Seaborne expects to fill in the gap.

The new planes are part of Seaborne’s expansion program, and Hanne said the airline will start San Juan to Tortola services in October and plan to double the number of flights between St. Thomas and St. Croix.

“We’re hoping to grow 150 percent,” she said.

Hanne said that on Saturday Seaborne will launch its online booking system, which allows travelers to check in and print out boarding passes at home. The airline also has interline agreements with other airlines that allow passengers to check bags through when they connect from Seaborne to other airlines.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Keeping our community informed is our top priority.
If you have a news tip to share, please call or text us at 340-228-8784.

Support local + independent journalism in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Unlike many news organizations, we haven't put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as accessible as we can. Our independent journalism costs time, money and hard work to keep you informed, but we do it because we believe that it matters. We know that informed communities are empowered ones. If you appreciate our reporting and want to help make our future more secure, please consider donating.