Airlines that have been or are interested in Curaçao flights

Finally, in July 2007, (took them a year)
CAP/Alterra saw fit to include flight information on their web site.
Arrivals       Departures
on the day we uploaded this news, there were 20 departures and 20 arrivals

Aeropostal
Originally set up in 1928 by a French company for interior services, LAV has long since extended to international flights as well. One of the only two Venezuela air lines allowed to land in the USA (even if I don't understand why.) Although they do seem to arrive like clockwork, with DC-9 turnaround times of about 20 minutes.

Air Aruba
After obtaining the status aparte, Aruba of course wanted their very own airline as well, like any start-up nation.
It has cost them, and us, dearly. They finally gave up and folded, not before they had tried their own fling on the route AUA-AMS.

Air Avia
These Arubian guys started selling tickets AUA-AMS in June 2004, but in July they announced you can get your money back.
I understand they still went on selling tickets for a while, regardless.

Air Curaçao
Set up by supermarket owner Goisco. Applied for divers licenses March 2005. Intends to start operations with official Suriname flag carrier SLM within a year. Just another name for Curaçao Air.

Aires
Colombian operator with 3 weekly flights BAQ-CUR, Dash aircraft. September 2007 there was talk of Aires being taken over by US Spirit.

Air St. Maarten
Another company that has had a web site for years, on which they kept announcing that, shortly, they'd start flying on the mid Atlantic and other airways. If you'd have held your breath, you'd have expired long since.
Their web site is now open and it's just a travel agency where you can book flights with other airlines.

Air Holland
After having left a lot of passengers stranded on Schiphol and Hato airports only a few months before, in the first week of July 2004 they announced to resume operations. You were supposed to get a new ticket for your unused one. The competition claimed, not unreasonably, that they were much too cheap at $135 for a return trip.

By December 2004 Air Holland's top executives were arrested because of alleged, as the expression is, drug smuggling and money laundering (and financing the airline with it to the tune of €28M). There was talk about how the airline had been used for drug transports CUR-AMS, about 600 keys of cocaine and, finally but by no means completely, about at least 5000 XTC pills Made in Holland—Sold in Brazil. Striking how drug money somehow always seems to get just wasted.
Air Holland's top managers Cees van Dormael en Paul Gruythuysen were acquitted on 12 March 2008, because the court of appeal "could not rule out that they had earned their money legally."

Air Jamaica
A very familiar story: As far as we know, Air Jamaica was set up by the goverment, then privatized, then had to be taken over by the government again. Very ambitious - probably much too ambitious. Use Curaçao-Kingston as a feed line to their hub connecting to the USA. In serious trouble by 2006; after a loss of $136M in 2005 a new one of $85M Jan-Aug 2006.

American Airlines
Don't have to tell you about this one, about the biggest in the world.
AA appreciably raised prices since DCA went bankrupt. Several daily flights from CUR to San Juan/Puerto Rico and Miami. American Eagle opens routes Santo Domingo CUR/AUA, 2007.

ArkeFly
Continued flights AMS-CUR after take-over of bankrupt Holland Exel by German tour operator TUI. After starting out with two weekly flights AMS-CUR, they will go to four in the second half of 2006; no doubt much to KLM's chagrin.

Aserca
Started up in 1968; had a controlling interest in the last years of Air Aruba. Charter flights CUR-Venezuela, AUA-Venezuela. Started 4-weekly line flights Caracas-CUR, June 2007.

Atlantic Airlines
Nothing to do with Virgin Atlantic.
This company, also referred to as Air Atlantic, so obscure you won't even find it in the search engines, seems to want to start a regional carrier with bases in Nicaragua and Honduras, with a new involvement by Gelt Dekker after he stopped participating in PIAS. (This tycoon is one of the many deluded ones who think they know everything, proven by the very fact they are rich.) The first charter, early August 2005, did not get Curaçao landing rights; this may take another four or six months. Talk about being presumptuous. Atlantic complains about slow handling of their permit requests in Curaçao and may be retracting from the game; but negotiations with InselAir may result in their starting regional Boeing 737 operations very soon.
In November 2005, Atlantic apologizes for Gelt Dekker's deprecating press utterances on Directie van Luchtvaart. At the same time, their manager postpones a meeting with Curaçao minister Leeflang because of bad weather conditions (actually, weather's just fine). On December 5, in his column in Antilliaans Dagblad, Gelt Dekker alleges a lot of things, accusing minister Leeflang of corruption; Atlantic feels obliged to apologize for the column and emphatically states the facts are different. Leeflang sues for a retraction, wins.
Just to keep everything clear, Atlantic is starting to refer to themselves AA. Nothing has been heard from them since the Gelt Dekker column, anyway.

Avior
After long negotiations with InselAir, Avior lands on Hato, out of the blue, in August 2006. CTB brags they have given Avior their support in all respects, which results in a price Caracas-CUR that's about half of what other companies charge since DCA's demise - which price was an incredible rip-off. We, knowing CTB and Schotte, can only hope we are not making up the difference.
Be aware that Venezuela's safety record is so bad that most Venezuelan aircraft are not allowed to fly to the USA.

Blue Skies Helicopters
Set up by Kenneth Leeflang in December 2006, and meant for the tourist trade, it should start operating mid 2007. Pilot and operations manager is George Tielen (not the world's most cautious flyer) well-known for his former Pelican Air, which had to stop operating after he had allowed police to run up a bill for his services that was so high, there was no way to pay it. I don't think the police helicopter that crashed a few years ago when its rotor got tangled up with a kite-wire (this is for real!) was under his personal control.
Understandably, Mr. Tielen didn't care much for my remarks and has asked me to retract them: Taking the risks he does, or his flyers, is all in the line of duty when flying for the Cops chasing Robbers. Fair enough and agreed. Still, many pilots I know would not want to take those risks, and the job, and so qualify as being more cautious.
Be all that as it may be, during the 2008 Gran Marcha, on television his helicopter was plainly visible above Willemstad center at well below the allowed 3000 ft height. Must have been a real emergency.

B.W.I.A.
Popularly known as Beewee, the Airline of Trinidad and Tobago; like ALM a colonial relic, set up by BOAC. In serious trouble by April 2005, they stopped operating their CUR-Port-of-Spain flights (via Santo Domingo), started in January 2005. After a $26M loss over 2005, in September 2006 the only solution seemed a new start-up under the name Caribbean Airways and firing 700 of the 1700 personnel (later reports mentioned an unknown number of 1900.) Familiar story? Even the name-spoof brings back memories of ALM: But Will It Arrive?

Caribbean Airways
Formerly BWIA of Trinidad and Tobago.

Caribbean Star
Antigua operator since 2000; sister of Caribbean Sun. Really affiliated with Atlantic Airlines, they announce a weekly 50 passenger flight Trinidad-CUR as from November 2006 (translated by 'always hopeful' CAP/Hato Airport as June 2006, when they will have their inaugural flight). Two weeks before then, postponed this to November. End October postponed again to December 1, when services started. Caribbean Star & Sun claim to serve 80,000 passengers per day with 18 Dash-8 300 aircraft.
In February, 2007 Caribbean Star ceased to exist and became part of LIAT. More details here. In March 2007, weekly flights CUR-POS were reduced to 4.

Constellation West Indian Airlines
As far as we can find out, now SCIAM; a re-name of the company that started as CWIA, which sounded like BWIA (now Caribbean Airlines). Associated with CaribJet of Grenada and InselAir, company was licensed in September and started flying POS to USA and Canada destinations from October.
Started 2 weekly flights to Panamá via CUR last week of June 2007, operated by Primaris Airlines. Had to cancel operations in October, as no aircraft was available.

Continental
Weekly flights Newark NJ-Curaçao with a Curaçao government guarantee of 60% seats sold, starting on December 17, 2005. Lowest return fare $520.
We have not been informed how much money this guarantee amounts to; no doubt there are reasons.
Even so, with a return trip Newark-Curaçao of 6400km, Continental charges $370 for a flight EWR-AMS of 11720km, which makes the Curaçao flight almost four times as expensive per km. No wonder new tourist deputy declares (March 2006) that they're doing well.
In September 2006, Continental declared they would not need any more guarantees as their occupancy was 70%; the company was even considering doubling the number of flights.

Conviasa
Remnant of former Venezuela state airline Viasa; still government-owned. Announced cooperation with InselAir, January 2007.

Curaçao Airways
Set up February 2005 by supermarket owner Gois. Other investors are invited to join the club. They see possibilities in Suriname's airline SLM, who now have three weekly 747 return flights Paramaribo-AMS and three weekly MD80 Paramaribo-Curaçao, but had not applied for a licence by 15 March 2005. Will use MD82 for inter-island flights. May enter partnership with Hamburg International charter company, Germany. Also call themselves Air Curaçao. Nothing more heard until announced ready to start operations, November 2005. Still not active Sept 2006. Guess we might as well forget it.

DAE Dutch Antilles Express (formerly Air Exel)
They have been flying CUR-AMS v.v. but have more ambitious plans, seemingly wanting to do exactly what KLM wanted to achieve with their West-Indisch Bedrijf. After bankruptcy, Holland Exel was taken over by ArkeFly, owned by German tour operator TUI, and continues AMS-CUR flights; BonairExel is operating under the name Dutch Antilles Express. It's a very safe bet KLM set up Exel to start competing with ALM/DCA and had to abandon the scheme on their take-over by Air France.
This has resulted in a lot of trouble. DAE was definitely underfinanced in the first years of operating. Their Embraers also seem to have given more trouble than bargained for. After DAE had been forced to lease a Fokker F50 to keep services going, it was finally (March 2006) announced that F100s will be acquired for the middle-distance routes.
Many former DCA workers have applied for jobs at DAE, but their pilots will get only ANG7700/month there, versus formerly 14K with DCA. Also, DAE will not pay training for other aircraft licenses. Ex-DCA pilots complain they would be forced to follow an F100 training course in Holland, while this could be done for a fraction of the price in the USA.
In February 2007 DAE has two Fokker F100s in operation with 6 weekly flights CUR-AUA, 38 BON-CUR with 35% more seats for CUR-SXM, several twice-daily flights/week. From CUR 6 flights/week to Valencia, 12 Caracas, 4 Santo Domingo, 2 Haïti, 2 Bogotá. HQ moved to Curaçao. Got no license for 3 Port of Spain flights/week as yet.
In October, announced cooperation with WinAir.
In February 2008 had many delays caused by mechanical problems and had to comply with Directie Luchtvaart to present a step-plan on how to improve maintenance. This was triggered by questions by Mirna Godett (yes, she's still around!) after a DAE aircraft had landed on one mengine. Little does she know... but we knew that already. An investigation left DAE in the clear.
As from April 2008 new lines will be added to Havana de Cuba and Port au Prince, Haïti.

Delta Airlines
One of the larger USA airlines; opened a line Atlanta-Curaçao some years ago, but stopped operations. According to reports, Delta is as good as bankrupt (November 2006).
Resumed weekly Atlanta-CUR in December 2007.

Divi Divi Air
Small but solid. Have been flying Bonaire-Curaçao since ~2000, and got an airline status in August 2006. With a reputation for flexible schedules and a ten-minute check-in time (which grew to twenty with the new terminal) very popular with regular commuters. Will also start operating to Aruba with 3 Britten-Norman BN2 Islanders and 1 Cessna 402 Executive, with some charter destinations in Venezuela.
Desperate people have been searching this site for their phone number. Call Bai Bini in Curaçao: (+5999) - 888 1050.

E-Liner Airways (AKA DBA (ELA Airlines)
Started operations in 1993 with charters (day tours and sightseeing ops) and cargo flights. 2006: Commuter service BON-CUR with 1 Piper Chieftain Navajo, also uses Piper Seneca II. Reservations Caribbean Jet. Phone +(599-9) 888-1089.

Exel
Former Dutch airline with a very short existence; routes taken over by Arke and DAE.

EZ Air
Allied to Kinikini Air Express, plans to operate between the Leeward Islands with later extensions to Trinidad, Haïti and Santo Domingo.
Plans to use Britten-Norman Trislanders (of which production stopped in 1983). I've this gut feeling it will never fly.
Seem to have been wrong. They have bought three Islanders and have a web site (with not much on it.) Operations, based on Bonaire, start May 2008 with one aircraft flying four daily trips BON-CUR. We'll keep you posted as more info comes in.
(What I can't understand is why they'd call me Buck Rogers 2. Must be my lack of humor?)

i-Jet
Started offering CUR-MIA tickets for a reasonably decent price in 2005. Never made it; small wonder, as they were established by the former manager of Dutch Caribbean Airlines.

Embraer @ DiggerHistory
copyright 1999 by Phillip Treweek

InselAir
Run by former DCA/ALM and Air Holland Edward Heerenveen, who wanted to represent Avior/Venezuela here.
Avior is a profitable company with the problem they're only allowed fly routes touching down in Venezuela. Plans to take over the former DCA routes. At least according to Asjes (not very reliable), in July 2005 Avior claims they haven't heard from InselAir for months. Pops up again November 2005 to announce being ready for inter-island operations with a 19 passenger Embraer Bandeirantes. Was also negotiating with Atlantic on cooperation for regional B737 operations.
Seems to be about to start operations, March 2006. First Embraer Bandeirante turboprop, Insel livery with Venezuelan registration, arrives on Hato airport, June 3. Got operating license on 11 August 2006 and will start operation September 2. Plans four daily flights to Aruba, and as many to Bonaire after two more Embraer have been delivered. A separate license for MD-80 operations (in cooperation with SLM) to start flying CUR-SXM followed the day after operations started with 2 daily flights CUR-AUA, but the judge put a stop to that and InselAir must wait for their own MD82.
The week after, InselAir asked, AND GOT, a new permit for six weekly flights on the same route, this time keeping it a secret who their partner is. Minister Gijsbertha retracted the permit - after InselAir was promised delivery of a second-hand Croation MD-82 in the first week of October (it had not arrived yet by half October, with no info about cause of delay, which then seemed a couple of months.)
There is legitimate cause to worry about the Venezuelan registration of InselAir aircraft. InselAir was very secretive about 'hidden partners', one of which must be Adriatic Air. So much for our new National Carrier, as they call themselves.
First MD-82 PJ-MDA arrived 24 December 2006; InselAir restarted former Caribbean DCA routes in January, 2007.
Later that month, announced collaboration with Venezuela, Conviasa (the national [=Chavez] carrier of Venezuela, Surinam SLM and Windward Islands WinAir. The conglomeration is called 'Pan-Caribbean Alliance' (but strictly, only half of them are Caribbean). But in October 2007, a cooperation between DAE and WinAir is announced. Even though InselAir carries a banner 'Ariba Korsow' [up with Curaçao] on their web site, it looks like they're hardly more Curaçao-owned then other operators.
August 2007 added 4 weekly flights to POS, Trinidad, in combination with SLM. Still has no license for flights to Miami, and instead opens a line to Manaus, Brazil, September 2007.
InselAir has a separate web site for their freight operations. An MD83 arrived in April, 2008 and became operational in June, bringing the total of aircraft to 2 MD8x and 2 Embraer Bandeirantes.

Kinikini Air Express
Nothing much known about these guys, except they're somehow affiliated with EZ Air.

KLM
Royal Dutch Airlines
KLM must have been just as sad as the rest of us to watch ALM and its successors spiral down the drain.
They now seem to want to make a come-back with Curaçao Air. Or, maybe, something else. After several premature announcements their present idea is to start a new regional carrier in the first quarter of 2005. Still not clear what their intentions are by August 2005. Although it's pretty obvious that they were involved with Bonaire- and all the other Excelling Expresses, they may have no more such ambitions since their take-over by Air France in 2004. By November 2005 it looks like pretty definite that KLM will not start another local company.
KLM announced they will reduce AMS flights to the N.A. from 12/week in the second half of 2006, mainly because of growing competition from ArkeFly and their own Martinair.
In December 2006 Air France declared KLM's Caribbean-Europe connections 'domestic flights', just like the French flights had always been, and KLM had to lower their exorbitant baggage charges, still much higher than those for American carriers. KLM announced making Bonaire their maintenance center, and changing from 747 to MD11 for their, as from March 2007 daily, CUR-AMS flights. Investigating possible line AMS-CUR-Panamá, July 2007.
IMPORTANT NOTICE about fake or sponsored low cost airlines
ETN is very suspicious about low cost airlines which are only started by a major, high-fare airline to protect their high-fare business against the real low cost airlines like Ryanair and Southwest!
Very often these fake or sponsored low cost airlines are closed down once they have pushed their truly low cost competitors out of business! If their low cost competitors are gone, the high-fare mother has again a monopoly and keeps the fares (often too) high.
KLM (with BuzzAway) and British Airways (with GoFly) have already tried this trick but luckily failed.
(But KLM is still on ETN's list with Transavia, and also tried this with Exel.)

Claim It! As EU-registered airlines, KLM and MartinAir have to pay compensation to all passengers all over the world in case of delays, rerouting and flight cancellations. You can file your own claim or fill out a form at EUclaim who will handle it (no-cure-no-pay) for a reasonable percentage.

Martinair
Dutch former charter company, MAC Martin's Air Charter, now a full-blown airline registered in the EU; as far as known fully owned by KLM, resumed flights AMS-CUR in November 2006, twice weekly, MD-11. From April 2007, three weekly flights.

NCA Northeast Caribbean Airlines
Specialized in charter flights, wants to use Curaçao as a hub for North and South America, Africa and Europe, starting in July 2004. Claim to have three 747s which Hato Airport can accommodate. May start executing CUR-AMS flights for DCA or other operators. Then again, they may not come here at all and haven't arrived here yet. As it turns out, the FOL cabinet just buried their submission deeply in a drawer. They were then talking about starting operations around 15 October, 2004. But with what certainly looks like heavy in-fighting this seems nothing but yet another fly-by-night operation.
Northeast Airlines, as the company is now called, announced in February 2005 that they were still planning to move their operations to Curaçao from Mbabane, Swaziland. They said their dealings here last year had been with a swindler (like will to like?).

PAS
Professional Air Services
Nothing known about this company, except that it is not actively flying.

PIAS
(which is a Dutch version of the French word paillasse, clown) stands for Pont International Air Services. These Surinamese guys seem to fly from Nigeria to the USA and Canada - via Europe. They think it might be cheaper to fly over Curaçao. Did they just now buy a globe or what? They, too, are willing to take over the AMS-CUR flights.
Everybody seems to like that one. Not actively flying. Tycoon Jacob Gelt Dekker announced negotiating with them to form a regional carrier and they seem to have applied for a licence. Gelt Dekker is said to have withdrawn by July 2005, and instead took up with Atlantic. By November 2005 PIAS seems to have 'disappeared'.

Royal Aruban Airlines
In Holland, you need a permit from the royal family for such a brand name, but in Aruba anything seems possible.
Anyway, for years these guys have kept popping up and going under again like a fisherman's float (but never getting more than nibbles.) Finally it turned out they were yet another cover for Air Holland's activities. In serious problems by March 2005. Declared bankrupt, December 2005, in a cloud of corruption involving Suriname and Aruba officials. Personnel, not having received their salaries for 15 months, started yet another company World Aviation Group.

SLM Suriname Airlines
Official Suriname's flag carrier, mentioned as a contender for the CUR-AMS route and, lately, as a partner in Air Curaçao, set up by supermarket owner Goisco. As of September 2005, seems to be a serious contender for the routes MIA-CUR. Supposed to start flying PBM-CUR-MIA via Haïti twice weekly as from October 2005, with a temporary 6 month licence; price about twice that of AA's. But their own web site never even listed the flight or the route, which never was inaugurated. Maybe the USA did not allow SLM to land in Miami for the same safety reasons they apply to Venezuelan flights.
In the last week of September 2006, after the deal with InselAir fell through, SLM was in serious trouble, with talk of a salary cut of 25% and of firing at least 100 of their 700 workers (for two aircraft, one of which was just sitting at Hato airport for 4 days per week.) 'Officially', SLM has three MD82 flights per week PBM-CUR, but you can't book those on their site.
Half November 2006, KLM was blamed for a threatening SLM bankruptcy, as the B-747 and MD-82 bought from them were much too expensive. So much, of course, for InselAir's grandiose plans as well; until in February 2007 Curaçao minister Leeflang gave InselAir and SLM a joint monopoly on the CUR-PBM route until 2008.
Final demise? SLM subsidies were stopped abruptly in June 2008; last flight AMS-Paramaribo June 20.

Spirit
US budget operator, located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. September 2007 there was talk of the company taking over Aires.

TACA
Operating from El Salvador, in March 2007 TACA announced interest in opening a line Panamá-CUR.

TransCaribbean Airways
Not actively flying. Got an economic licence to operate in March 2005. Call themselves National Flag Carrier of the N.A. and have ambitious plans. (The N.A. as from July 2007 may consist of St. Eustatius island only). Reported to have great financial problems by November 2005. In January 2006, a co-operation was announced between TCA and Sita for a booking system. TCA also wants to start a Curaçao maintenance facility with Airbus. But in February 2006 the US government questioned how a $500K subsidy for training had been used by TCA; 46 trainees supposedly had received over 336 hours of training a month, which is more than 12 hours/day. TCA has been presenting grandiose schemes since 2004, none of them realized.

Tiara Air
Aruba; 2 Short 360-100 aircrafts, 33 passengers; 3 daily flights to Curaçao and also flights to Bonaire and to (some of the following planned) Las Piedras, Valencia, Barquisimeto, Maracaïbo, Santa Martha and Barranquilla. Started operations April, 2006. Was grounded for a week, later extended to a month, by Aruba aviation authorities, March 2007.
Phone (297) 582-0901 or (297)-58TIARA

TUI
German tour operator; took over Holland Exel after its bankruptcy and started operating it as ArkeFly.

WinAir
Windward Island airline (started 1961), taken over Exel who never signed the final take-over agreement. In October 2005 the Antillean government decided the airline would be transferred to the Windward islands of St. Maarten, Saba and St. Eustatius, who will run it in the future. Just like DCA, WinAir never bothered to pay social securities and employees' taxes. Promising, as the company will after all not be privatized.
St. Maarten politicians feel that this take-over has been forced through, and that a claim should be put in to Exel (Bonairiaanse Participatie Maatschappij) for not complying with their promises. Meanwhile, the three windward islands do not have the money to operate the airline, either.
In October 2006 there were claims several local groups were interested in taking over, besides DAE, Caribbean Star and 'a Canadian group'. Is in more or less chronic trouble because of insufficient number of pilots, who prefer being paid well elsewhere.
In October 2007, there is new talk of an extended cooperation with DAE.

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