The government of Antigua and Barbuda has agreed the terms of a joint initiative with Nigerian carrier Air Peace to boost investment in LIAT, based at V. C. Bird International Airport (ANU), which serves Saint John, the Caribbean nation’s capital city.
See also: Caribbean Airlines will resume flights to Venezuela
Air Peace to become majority shareholder of LIAT 2020
As reported by Loop Caribbean News, both parties will invest through cash and other assets in the revamped LIAT 2020. The plan to launch the brand has been on hold since 2020 due to a lack of funds. In that regard, the contribution of Air Peace, which will acquire a majority stake, will be key.
Air Peace has recently shown interest in developing its presence in the Caribbean. It is currently working to launch new transatlantic routes from Africa. Based on negotiations with the government of Barbados, the company could start operating scheduled flights between Barbados and Nigeria in the second quarter of 2023.
The revival of a historic airline in the Caribbean
In July 2020, LIAT (an acronym for Leeward Islands Air Transport) ceased operations.
The then prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda, one of the company’s majority shareholders along with the governments of Barbados, Dominica and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, had announced that the company would be liquidated after reporting large losses in 2019 and suffering the consequences of the pandemic and border closures.
The judicial authorities appointed an administrator and gave it the responsibility of reorganising the company and cleaning up its accounts. On 30 November of the same year, the airline with the largest presence in the Lesser Antilles resumed operations, albeit on a temporary basis and with a reduced schedule.
Antigua and Barbuda wants to maintain island connectivity
Now, the government of Antigua and Barbuda says its main goal is to have an airline capable of meeting the demand for air connectivity in the region.
Founded in 1956 in conjunction with BWIA (now Caribbean Airlines), LIAT expanded rapidly to different islands in the region and provided a new transport alternative for its communities.
The company suffered its first financial crisis in 1974, when several shareholders declared bankruptcy. As a result, eleven countries bought LIAT in order to maintain island air connections.
