The Tribune

By ANNELIA NIXON

and FAY SIMMONS

Tribune Business Reporters

Lynden Pindling International Airport’s (LPIA) operator yesterday confirmed that more than 20 flights into The Bahamas’ major aviation gateway have been cancelled due to Winter Storm Fern’s impact on air travel from major tourism source markets across the US.

Jonathan Hanna, Nassau Airport Development Company’s (NAD) director of operations, said 21 flights had been cancelled and 19 delayed since Saturday due to the ongoing major ice and winter storm. 

“The winter storm Fern has been affecting a large portion of the United States, particularly along the eastern seaboard, where a number of our source markets are, which has resulted in a number of flight cancellations and delays,” said Mr Hanna. “Since Saturday, we've had 21 cancellations, with the majority of those cancellations happening Sunday, and about 19 delays.”

He added that airlines have not announced plans to add larger planes or extra flights to make up for the cancellations and delays, but that could change as the situation develops.

“At this time, they have not indicated that they would be bringing any larger aircraft or bringing on any additional frequencies, but that is subject to change, and we continue to be in close dialogue with them at this time,” said Mr Hanna. 

He added that when there is extreme winter weather, such as ice or heavy snow, planes need to be de-iced before they can take off - a process that can lead to delays. 

“Typically, what happens with winter weather is there's a need for de-icing, and the operation slows down to ensure that safety is always paramount. And so we continue to work with our airline partners at this time,” Mr Hanna said.

Winter Storm Fern has affected large parts of the US from the Gulf Coast through the mid-west and up the eastern seaboard. It brought a mix of heavy snow, sleet and ice, with significant accumulations in many states. 

The storm has caused extensive damage to power infrastructure due to ice on lines and trees, resulting in widespread outages.  Airports throughout the US reported thousands of flight cancellations and delays including New York, Atlanta and North Carolina. 

However, Family Island hotels have not seen a major impact on bookings from the cancelled incoming flights, but the continued boating fees fall-out has Harbour Island “10 percent behind where we should be”.

Molly McIntosh, the Bluff House Beach Resort and Marina’s top management executive, said the Abaco-based hotel did not lose business but some guests had instead extended their stay. 

“The only way it's impacted my specific resort is that we've had some people that have had to stay longer because they couldn't get out,” Ms McIntosh said. “But we did not lose any business from people not being able to get in. And that's unusual but that's the way it worked this time.

“We're just charging them the same rate that they were getting. Nobody seems to be upset. It's beautiful here. They're just grateful to be here and not up in New York. I mean, it could be the other way. I understand that we got lucky, but we're making a fuss over them and teasing and having a good time, keeping everybody happy down here in the warm, sunny Bahamas.”

Lee Prosenjak, managing director of Harbour Island’s Valentine’s Resort and Marina, said one room might be impacted which isn’t “enough to be noticeable”.

“I think it's only affected really one room of someone who's like, 'I can't get here,'” Mr Prosenjak said. “So I think that one's probably just going to cancel because it was a short stay anyway. 

“What we normally do, we try to be very generous, because we want people to be here and to come back. So even though our policies kind of say differently, we tend to see if I can first get somebody to come back and say, 'We can't make it this week, but we could make it a week in April' or something like that.

“Then I try to do that and push it to a different time, and it's nice for us. I really want the business in rather than keeping a small deposit. I'd rather have the guest on property, and so that we can make it be a great experience.”

Henry Rolle, the Rock House’s managing partner, said one room has been impacted by the flight cancellations but the guest is now looking to travel on a private flight.

Instead, Mr Rolle’s concern stems more from the impact of the boating fees. While his hotel does not have a marina, he said a lot of his business comes from persons who dock at the marinas in Harbour Island.

“It’s just the island as a whole,” he added. “I'll put it this way. We're pacing below where we should be and that’s everywhere on the island. I'm sure you know, the biggest impact we've had was the boating fees. That was so bad. 

“Because the island is so small, and because we have three marinas, a lot of our business kind of depends on the boats coming in. With that alone, I think we're pacing about 10 percent behind where we should be. But I know there's a lot of people that are way behind that number, and pretty much because they cater directly to the boaters that come through. I can see why they did it. The people with the money, I mean, they didn't really care. They still came. But most of the market that comes here, they're rich, but they're not that wealthy.”