direct CYB-MIA flight gone?

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backprop

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This year there was a direct CYB->MIA flight on a 737. I'm looking at schedules for next year (connecting from Little Cayman this time) and that flight appears to be no more. Does anyone know if Cayman Airways cut it for good and why? (The direct MIA->CYB flight still exists)
 
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Maybe they ran CYB to MIA direct in the spring? Has not been a non-stop route since at least the summer schedule which started 12 March.

I know there has been a lot of talk about CYB to MIA non-stop but was not aware it had ever actually commenced despite the upgrades made to the Brac airport. The viability of CYB to MIA was tied to whether a onward flight from Brac to Holguin, Cuba could be made to work. The idea was the nonstop flights between CYB and MIA would be partially filled by American tourists seeking to travel to Cuba. Doesn't seem that has played out well so no surprise the CYB to MIA leg would be cut.
 
It existed for booking when I was doing early planning for my last trip to Brac (July). Some of my group were scheduled on it but it didn't leave until very late afternoon which put it into Miami too late for those of is with connecting flights. I can't say for certain who, if anyone, actually took it but it was definitely available on the site at one time. That's not to say it hadn't been cancelled by March, just that some folks had booked it when setting up their trip. I'd much rather connect in Brac than GCM so I hope it works out some day.
 
Years ago, their route was MIA > CYB > GCM then back to MIA. In the time I've lived in GCM, I've taken quite a few flights back to MIA, and they seem to have abandon this route. I've never seen it offered when booking flights either.

My recollection was when they did it this way, very few got on or off at the Brac. Maybe it just wasn't cost effective to land a 737 there.
 
The MIA >CYB > GCM flight is still bookable (just not in reverse GCM->CYB->MIA). I took it twice in the past couple years, including this year. My experience has been similar to yours. We had a very large group get off at CYB this year, but most passengers stayed on the plane to continue to GCM. I agree that it can't be too economical other than in promotion value of the sister islands. I really really dislike transiting GCM, especially on a Saturday, and would happily go out of my way timewise if I could use CYB as the connecting point from/to either of the sister islands.

By the way, when are the current GCM renovations expected to be completed?
 
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By the way, when are the current GCM renovations expected to be completed?

Phase 2, marking the halfway point, is scheduled to be done by end of 2017. The work yet to be done is more extensive.

The Cayman Islands Airport Authority releases periodic newsletter updates on the redevelopment. The most recent newsletter is from April 2017. Local media reports hint at a hoped for 2018 completion for all work.

And once that is done we can go right back to arguing over whether to extend the runway and, if so, how that should be done. The current airport works does not include a runway lengthening.
 
To the best of my knowledge, the flight you are referencing was a direct from MIA to CYB, but the return leg was always CYB to GCM to MIA.

It always stopped in Grand Cayman.
 

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