LIAT

Infobox Airline
airline=Leeward Islands Air Transport

---

logo_size = 150
IATA = LI
ICAO = LIA
callsign = LIAT
founded = October 20, 1956 (as Leeward Islands Air Transport Services)cite book|last=Norwood|first=Tom|coauthors=Wegg, John|title=North American Airlines Handbook|publisher=Airways International|location=Sandpoint, ID|date=2002|edition=3rd|isbn=0-9653993-8-9|url=http://www.airwaysnews.com]
commencement = 1974-10-20
key_people=Mark Darby (CEO)
Jean Stewart Holder (Chairman)
headquarters = Antigua
hubs = VC Bird International Airport
Grantley Adams International Airport
Piarco International Airport
fleet_size = 17
destinations = 22
company_slogan = The Caribbean Airline
website= http://www.liat.com

LIAT is an airline based in St. John's, Antigua. It operates high-frequency interisland scheduled services serving 22 destinations in the Caribbean. The airline's main base is VC Bird International Airport, Antigua and Barbuda, with hubs at Grantley Adams International Airport, Barbados and Piarco International Airport, Trinidad and Tobago.cite news | title= Directory: World Airlines | work= Flight International | page= 105 | date= 2007-04-03]

History

Leeward Islands Air Transport Services was founded on 20 September 1956 and began flying with a single Piper Apache operating between Antigua and Montserrat. With the acquisition in 1957 of 75% of the airline by the larger, better known BWIA, LIAT was able to expand to other Caribbean destinations and to obtain new airplane types, such as the Beechcraft Bonanza and de Havilland Heron airplanes. Hawker Siddeley HS 748's came in 1965, due to the airline's decision to phase out the Herons.

LIAT wasn't always an all propeller engined airline: after Court Line obtained the airline in the early 1970s, LIAT entered the jet age, using BAC One Elevens for their longer Caribbean routes, as well as Britten-Norman types. In 1973, LIAT provided maintenance work for another Caribbean airline, Carib Aviation; these services were suspended when Carib Aviation decided to hire their own mechanics in 1974.

Court Line went bankrupt soon after acquiring LIAT, and the BAC-One Elevens were gone from the LIAT fleet as well. In order to keep the airline flying, the governments of 11 Caribbean nations stepped in and bought the airline. The jets were replaced with a series of smaller airplanes, such as the Twin Otters.

The 1980s were a decade of growth for the airline: by 1986, many daily flights were operated to Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, as well as other regions that the airline had never flown to. Faster Dash 8-100 airplanes were bought, to reduce flighttimes system-wide.

In November 1995, LIAT was partially privatized, to save it from bankruptcy once again. LIAT also began to fly the 50 seater Dash 8-300 series of the Dash 8.

LIAT's Pilots are represented by the Leeward Islands Air Line Pilots' Association (LIALPA), which is affiliated with IFALPA. LIALPA is also part of the regional Caribbean Air Line Pilots' Association (C-ALPA).

Merger

In January 2007 the airline announced an intended merger with Caribbean Star Airlines, and they entered into a commercial alliance, involving the flying of a combined schedule. All flights are now marketed as LIAT, although the airlines continued to operate separately using their own air operators certificates, until after completion of the merger. The merged airline will use the LIAT brand and the marketing slogan "The Star of the Caribbean", with a merged fleet expected to standardise on the Bombardier Dash 8 Q300.However in June 2007, the Share Holder Governments of Barbados, Antigua and St. Vincent gave the go ahead to the Board of Directors to Buy Out Caribbean Star instead. LIAT purchased Caribbean Star Airlines on the 24 October 2007 and five of Caribbean Star's DHC-8 aircraft have been transferred to LIAT.

The airline is owned by 7 Caribbean governments, with 3 being the Major shareholders (73.4%), privately held (10%) and employees (5.3%). It has 673 employees (at March 2007).

Codeshare agreements

On LIAT's services to Anguilla, Antigua, Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, Nevis Montserrat and St. Vincent are codeshared with Carib Aviation, which also uses Antigua & Barbuda as it's hub. But since July 11, 2008, LIAT had to temporarily suspended its commercial arrangements with Carib Aviation, due to the recent grounding of two of Carib Aviation's 6 aircraft by the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority (ECCAA). [ [http://www.liatairline.com/news/carib_release.html LIAT suspends Carib Aviaition codeshare arrangements] ] .

Both Airlines have later agreed that from August 16, 2008 the existing codeshare and wet-lease arrangements will be terminated but a new arrangement will take place, whereby LIAT will make Carib Aviation flights available through its reservations system. Customers will now be able to book Carib ("3Q") flights through the LIAT website, call centre and travel agents who are using the LIAT Travel Agents 'portal'. It will also be possible to book 'through' tickets on to LIAT services, where, for example, Montserrat-Antigua-Barbados, where the Montserrat-Antigua flight is performed by Carib and the Antigua-Barbados flight is performed by LIAT.

At a number of stations, LIAT will also provide Carib Aviation with ground handling services. However, Carib, which has full certification as a scheduled carrier, will be entirely responsible for its own services, delays, misconnected bags, etc. [ [http://www.liatairline.com/news/carib_release2.html New LIAT/Carib Aviation agreements] ]

But the agreement will now be canceled since Carib Aviation's decision to suspend it's operations. The airline has announced that it will will suspend all service at 11.59 pm local time on Tuesday September 30, 2008. Following the airline's announcement of the suspension of its operations, LIAT was obliged to discontinue its marketing of Carib Aviation tickets via LIAT's website ("3Q") seats. [ [http://www.liatairline.com/news/carib_update.html Carib Aviation suspends all operations, leaving LIAT in the dust] ]

Cargo services

LIAT Also provides cargo services, with it's service called "Quickpack". This service provides Airport-to-Airport & Door-to-Door, customs cleared delivery service throughout the Caribbean. The delivery time is typically within one to two days, guaranteed by the LIAT staff. [ [http://www.liatairline.com/quikpak.htm LIAT Quickpack/Cargo] ]

Antigua Sailing Week

On April 10, 2008, in celebration of the 41st anniversary of the Stanford Antigua Sailing Week, sailboats will be travelling the skies. As a Silver Sponsor of the Stanford Antigua Sailing Week, LIAT has replaced the usual white fuselage on one of its Bombardier Dash 8 300 aircraft with a brightly coloured, nautical themed livery featuring sailboats on the ocean, as well as the Stanford Antigua Sailing Week logo. The aircraft that was painted is registered as "V2-LFU". [ [http://www.liat.com/news/ASW_launch.html LIAT Antigua Sailing Week Launch] ]

Destinations

LIAT provides service in the Eastern Caribbean region from Santo Domingo Dominican Republic in the north to Georgetown Guyana in the south, linking the chain of islands in between. [ [http://www.liat.com/destinations.html LIAT Desitnations map] ]

Incidents & Accidents

On August 23, 1959, a LIAT de Havilland DH-114 Heron 2B crashed on landing in St. Kitts. The plane was en-route between St. Johns, Antigua and St. Kitts.

Fleet

The LIAT fleet includes the following aircraft (at January 2008): Fact|date=June 2007

Previously operated

The LIAT retired fleet includes the following aircraft:
* BAC One Eleven 518FG
* Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander
* De Havilland Canada DHC-6-310 Twin Otter
* Hawker Siddeley HS-748

External links

* [http://www.liat.com/ LIAT]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/caribbean/news/story/2007/03/070307_liatmarch.shtml LIAT Caribbean Star Merger Article]
* [http://www.caribjet.com/liat.htm Another LIAT website]
* [http://www.planespotters.net/Airline/LIAT Current fleet information]

References