Government shareholders of Antigua-based regional airline LIAT have pledged to support the ailing carrier’s efforts to combat competitive threats from the likes of regional newcomer Caribbean Star. A committee of regional governments led by St. Vincent prime minister Ralph Gonsalves and composed of Barbados, Guyana, St. Vincent and Antigua has promised to inject $11 million into LIAT, whose CEO, Garry Cullen, has accused fellow Antiguan carrier Caribbean Star of engaging in predatory pricing in the region.
Established just two years ago, Caribbean Star has rapidly become one of the largest airlines in the region, and now claims to control 50 percent of the eastern Caribbean market. Flying a fleet of six 37-seat de Havilland Dash 8-100s and three 50-seat Dash 8-300s to 14 islands, the airline has doubled its passenger numbers in the past year, after losing roughly $30 million during its first year of operation. Cullen has criticized Caribbean Star’s chairman, Texas billionaire Allen Stanford, for what he characterized as an unwillingness to cooperate with neighboring established airlines.
