Bahamasair halts seasonal flights to Trinidad citing low demand amid rising gang violence

Bahamasair has announced the cancellation of its seasonal flight service between Nassau, the Bahamas and Port of Spain, Trinidad which was scheduled to operate from February 27 to March 5, 2025, coinciding with Trinidad and Tobago’s annual carnival celebrations.  

While announcing the development through an official press release on Tuesday, the airline said that the cancellation comes primarily because of the low-ticket sales and alleged that it is due to the escalating gang violence in the twin island nation. Bahamasair added that the demand did not meet the minimum requirements to sustain the route.  

The airline acknowledged the recent state of emergency in Trinidad and Tobago declared on December 30, 2024, as the reason behind the low sale of tickets and emphasised that the ‘escalating gang-related violence may have impacted traveller confidence and demand.’ 

The press release highlighted that as the national flag carrier with domestic, regional and international routes, the air carrier holds a history of offering special seasonal flights to various destinations in a bid to support events and festivals. It mentioned that while this particular service will not proceed as planned, Bahamasair remains committed to evaluating and possibly reinstating the Nassau to Port of Spain route for future Carnival season, according to the market demand and the stability in the country.  

Notably, the passengers who had already purchased tickets for the flights which have been cancelled are now being contacted directly by the airline’s customer service team to arrange full refunds or some other travel options.  

Bahamasair also apologised to the customers for announcing the sudden cancellation of the flights and said that it appreciated the understanding of its passengers.  

While the cancellation has made the residents disappointed with several of them complaining about the abrupt notice on social media, others are also saying that this decision might save the lives of people who were even planning to travel to Trinidad and Tobago amid rising homicide rates.  

“You know what so crazy people is are angry over the cancelation, but no one is considering that it may God saving them,” wrote a user named Antone Benette.  

State of Emergency in Trinidad and Tobago 

Trinidad and Tobago declared State of Emergency initially on December 30, 2024, for a period of 15 days following six homicides which occurred within 48 hours. However, the SOE could not stop the rising murder toll in the country with reports of homicides of two high profile attorneys coming just days after the implementation of the emergency.  

This led the government to push the State of Emergency to three months on January 13, 2025. The development was announced by outgoing Prime Minister Keith Rowley who anticipates a decrease in homicide and other gang violence after the SOE lifts in the next three months.  

He explained that the SOE will allow the police officials to make arrests without warrants and on suspicion of illegal work being done by individuals, making it easy for them to curb the ongoing gang violence in the country.