Source: Antigua Observer
Early Monday morning was recorded as a “bittersweet” moment for the regional carrier LIAT 1974 Ltd as it took to the skies on its last departure from the VC Bird International Airport.
The airline’s “flight final” operated the route St Maarten, Tortola, and back to Antigua and Barbuda.
After decades of serving the people of the sub-region by providing air transportation, the regional air carrier has seen its last set of passengers, board its plane under its current operation.
The Leeward Islands Air Transport Services was founded by the late Sir Frank Delisle in Montserrat on 20 October 1956.
With the acquisition in 1957 of 75 per cent of the airline by British West Indies Airways (BWIA), LIAT was able to expand to other Caribbean destinations.
In July 2020, the airline was placed under administration following financial difficulties due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Its shareholder governments of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Barbados, and St Vincent and the Grenadines — agreed to liquidate the company in 2022.
The Antigua and Barbuda government sought to keep the airline in the skies, citing its importance in regional transportation, but under the new name of LIAT 2020 Ltd.
The government struggled to gain much traction of support among sub-regional governments in the early stages of their plans, having later reaching an agreement tentatively with Nigerian airline Air Peace and its owner Allen Onyema to operate the airline while providing a route to the African continent.
LIAT’s court-appointed Administrator Cleaveland Seaforth recently sent a letter to the company’s staff stating that effective February 4, 2024, all employees will be made redundant.