Air Canada adds winter route to St Vincent and the Grenadines

Air Canada has announced that it will fly to St Vincent and the Grenadines each week, one of six news routes for the airline's winter season.

The announcement comes as the St Vincent and the Grenadines Tourism Authority works to attract international carriers to the Argyle International Airport (AIA), which was officially opened on 14 February 2017.

Benjamin Smith, president of passenger airlines at Air Canada, said: “Air Canada is continuing its strategic, global expansion with a diverse range of exciting new non-stop routes this winter to Australia, South America, the Caribbean and the United States."

The airline says its first long-haul international scheduled service to St Vincent and the Grenadines “offers new choices for travellers looking to escape Canadian winters”.

Tourism has been the main foreign exchange earner for St Vincent and the Grenadines over the last three decades and this news will be a boost in earnings from the international airport

Glen Beache, CEO of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Tourism Authority said: “We are happy to welcome an airline such as Air Canada which has a rich history to St Vincent and the Grenadines. We look forward to a successful partnership which will enable both entities to grow.”

The AIA's runway is designed to accommodate aircraft as large as the Boeing 747-400s. The 171,000 square foot terminal building is designed to handle 1.5 million passengers annually, more than five times the capacity at it's predecessor.