Photo by David Cogswell
For the domestic airline industry, today's historic news that the U.S. is looking to re-establish diplomatic relations with Cuba and end a 50-year embargo of the country represents something that is a rarity in the travel sector in this day and age.
A new market.
A new market that could be a boon, given the mystery of the Caribbean's largest country.
We've penetrated the Iron Curtain, sent travelers deep into the Amazon, put a man in space and had him live there for months on end.
But for many Americans, Cuba might as well be the moon. Two generations have passed since the U.S. severed ties with Cuba in 1961 and prohibited travel to the country. Now the airlines have a chance to relive the rich aviation history between the two countries that formerly was dominated in the 1930s through the 1950s by Eastern Airlines and Pan Am - two airlines that don't even exist anymore.
"We look forward to the day - hopefully soon - when all Americans have the opportunity to travel to Cuba," Orbitz CEO Barney Harford said in a statement. "There are numerous economic, social and cultural benefits that will flow from free and open access and our customers are eager to visit Cuba."
Currently, such major airlines as Virgin Atlantic, LAN and Copa - all foreign, of course - service Havana.
So who is poised in the U.S. to take advantage?
In no particular order, start with the airlines who, believe it or not, do have a presence in Havana. American Airlines, Delta and JetBlue currently run charters (or have recently) to Cuba for such things as approved cultural exchange trips.
American would be an obvious choice given its hub in Miami and proximity to Cuba. It still runs charters to Cuba out of Miami and Tampa.
Delta ran charters from 2011-2012, and a spokesman told the Associated Press that "having served there through our charter operations, the groundwork has been laid for us to possibly serve the market if an opportunity becomes available."
JetBlue just began its latest service to the Caribbean, nonstop flights out of JFK to Curacao. Its inroads into the region, and its current charter business, make it a favorite to try to land a route to Cuba.
But they certainly won't be the only airlines to think about Cuba as an emerging market. One huge factor in all of this is not just U.S-to-Cuba direct, but the chance to engage more business in foreign markets for travelers who wish to visit Cuba but are limited in airline selection because of the current embargo.
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