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United eyes resuming Guam flights Saturday
United Airlines is planning to resume its Guam-Saipan flights this Saturday, May 2, a month after suspending air services due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Commonwealth Ports Authority board chair Kimberlyn King-Hinds said yesterday that United Airlines informed CPA that they will resume services beginning May 2, at thrice a week: Monday, Thursday, and Saturday.
A big question remains, though, since this will be contrary to a standing directive from the CNMI government that discourages travel in and out and between the CNMI islands as a health precaution. King-Hinds said yesterday that that standing directive has not changed yet.
There is currently no positive COVID-19 case in the CNMI.
United Airlines’ last flight from Saipan to Guam was on April 5, in which 57 passengers were aboard a 170-seat plane. The airlines’ original plan was to suspend flights only until today, Thursday, April 30, but that was later extended.
Earlier this month, King-Hinds characterized United Airlines’ flight suspension as “unfortunate but necessary and critical to the whole-of-government approach” to identify, contain and isolate the further spread of COVID-19 in the community.
King-Hinds said the efforts to have flight suspended actually began last January, during the early stage of the pandemic, but there were a lot of hurdles that they needed to get through to make that happen. As it is, only the Federal Aviation Authority has the power to suspend flights in the CNMI.
Gov. Ralph DLG Torres later requested United Airlines to suspend all flights to and from the CNMI effective April 6 to 30, 2020, in the wake of the then-two confirmed COVID-19 cases and one death in the quarantine center on Saipan.
Skymark Airlines Inc.’s last flights between Saipan and Japan was on March 25. The suspension of Saipan-Narita, Narita-Saipan operation was supposed to last until May 10, 2020, but the company extended the flight operation suspension until May 31, 2020.
