FedEx has finally given up on efforts to launch regular cargo flights between the USA and Cuba as political and economic relations between the two countries have worsened.
The company gained approval for five weekly flights between Miami and Varadero back in 2016 at a time when then-President Barack Obama was seeking to improve bilateral relations. This policy was reversed after Donald Trump took office in early 2017 and made it tougher for American firms to do business with Cuba.
FedEx then delayed starting the service several times during 2017 and 2018 by filing for extensions to the startup date, citing operational problems as well as the need to establish business relationships with Cuban companies.
But the Memphis-based group has now abandoned the planned flights, Bloomberg reported yesterday, quoting a company letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation. This said that FedEx “will not be filing for an extension of the startup date for U.S.– Cuba cargo air service between Miami and Varadero”. Instead, it is looking into “alternative all-cargo service options to Cuba”.
