Caribbean Beat — November/December 2018 (#154)

A MESSAGE From OUR CEO
Dear Customers,
Compliments of the season to you
and your families — we are delighted
to welcome you on board at this very
special time of year.
Caribbean Airlines is thrilled to share
that we won two prestigious awards at
the 25th Annual World Travel Awards
2018, which took place in Jamaica in
late September. For the eighth consecutive
year, we earned the title “Caribbean’s
Leading Airline,” and for the first time we
topped the category as the “Caribbean’s
Leading Brand 2018.”
The World Travel Awards brand is
known globally as the ultimate hallmark
of quality, with winners setting the benchmark
to which all others aspire.
We have spent much of 2018 improving
our range of products and services
to enhance your travel experience.
These two awards are quite meaningful,
as they affirm that our brand is distinguishing
itself by delivering the value
that you demand. It gives our teams
even more motivation to carry out our
vision to be the preferred airline serving
and connecting the Caribbean and
beyond.
The airline continues to make positive
progress commercially as well as great
strides in delivering superior service.
Technology has driven many of the
developments and will continue to do so
as we move forward. The impact of our
dedication is evident in the bottom line,
and in addition to our improved financial
performance, some of the major
achievements for 2018 include:
• Our “Hello Caribbean” marketing
campaign, highlighting the
uniqueness and charm of all
the destinations we serve and
encouraging travel within the region
• The start of service to Havana, Cuba
• Additional direct flights between
Guyana and JFK, New York
• The introduction of non-stop service
from St Vincent and the Grenadines
to JFK, New York
• Caribbean Plus, which offers extra
sean pavone/shutterstock.com
Havana, Caribbean Airlines' newest destination
leg room within the economy cabin
of the Boeing 737 jet aircraft
• Caribbean Explorer, which gives
travellers the ability to go to several
islands on one affordable fare
• The launch of Webchat and
WhatsApp Chat for business
• The activation of Caribbean Miles
online miles redemption
• Caribbean Upgrade, where
economy class ticket holders can
bid for available Business Class
seats on all eligible routes
• Caribbean Café, which has
increased the range of items
available for sale on board. Our
Caribbean Café proudly showcases
products from Caribbean-based
manufacturers. Please check
your seat pocket to view the full
catalogue.
• Our new cargo website, which
enables you to track packages in
real-time
• An interline E-ticketing agreement
(IET) with Hainan Airlines. This
provides greater convenience
for customers travelling between
China and the Caribbean, where
the passenger journey can now be
bought on a single ticket, in a single
transaction
These successes were only possible
through the commitment of our employees
and the support of our valued stakeholders.
In 2019, the positive changes will
continue, as we roll out more elements of
our strategic plan, built on the pillars of:
• People
• Process
• Profitability
• Customer
• Community
A key part of our strategy to reach
profitability is our transition into an agile
enterprise that is more responsive to the
market. We are reviewing our network
and will reposition our personnel and
fleet to provide even better service for the
right value, and to deliver greater returns
to our stakeholders. In the coming
months, we will share more developments
as our strategy is executed.
On behalf of the entire Caribbean
Airlines Team, we say a heartfelt THANK
YOU to our customers and valued stakeholders
for your unwavering support.
Have a safe and peace-filled Christmas,
and may 2019 bring you and your
families all the good things you desire.
Garvin Medera
Chief Executive Officer
18 WWW.CARIBBEAN-AIRLINES.COM