British Airways announced that it will connect London with Georgetown (GEO) in Guyana and Aruba (AUA) for the Northern Hemisphere summer season 2023. It will be the first time that both destinations will be part of the airline’s destination network.
Flights will be operated from Gatwick (LGW), via Saint Lucia (UVF) to Guyana and via Antigua and Barbuda (ANU) to Aruba, using fifth freedom rights.
Aruba adds a new player
The route between London and Aruba will start on March 26, there will be flights twice a week with Boeing 777-200ER aircraft with a capacity of 336 and 332 passengers depending on the variant.
- London/Gatwick (LGW) – Antigua and Barbuda (ANU) / Flight BA 2157 / LGW 10am – ANU 1.35pm Thursdays and Sundays.
- Antigua and Barbuda (ANU) – Aruba (AUA) / Flight BA 2157 / ANU 14:35 – AUA 16:00 Thursday and Sunday.
- Aruba (AUA) – Antigua and Barbuda (ANU) / Flight BA 2156 / AUA 08:30 – ANU 20:15 on Thursdays and Sundays.
- Antigua and Barbuda (ANU) – London/Gatwick (LGW) / Flight BA 2156 / ANU 21:15 – LGW 10:15 (+1) Thursdays and Sundays.
The United Kingdom is Aruba’s third most important market: in 2019 they welcomed 10,882 British tourists. Currently, the only airline operating between the two markets is TUI Airways, with one weekly flight between March and October.
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British Airways will be the fourth airline to connect the island to Europe, as KLM and TUIfly Netherlands also operate from Amsterdam (in addition to the TUI Airways schedule).
A historic moment for Guyana
On the other hand, Guyana will have for the first time in its history a direct connection with Europe. Usually, to reach the South American country, one had to fly through Barbados or Trinidad and Tobago.
The service will start on March 27, will have two weekly flights and will also be operated by Boeing 777-200ER aircraft with the same capacity configurations as the Aruba flight: 336 and 332 passengers.
- London/Gatwick (LGW) – St. Lucia (UVF) / Flight BA 2159 / LGW 11:35 – UVF 15:35 Monday and Thursday.
- St. Lucia (UVF) – Georgetown (GEO) / Flight BA 2159 / UVF 16:25 – GEO 18:05 Monday and Thursday.
- Georgetown (GEO) – St. Lucia (UVF) / Flight BA 2158 / GEO 19:50 – UVF 20:15 Monday and Thursday.
- St. Lucia (UVF) – London/Gatwick (LGW) / Flight BA 2158 / UVF 22:15 – LGW 11:45 (+1) on Thursdays and Sundays.
Guyana’s Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill, had stated in 2021 during the InterCaribbean landing that they were negotiating with British airlines to connect Cheddi Jagan International Airport with London.
The two countries have a particularly important cultural connection, given that Guyana is the only South American country that was a former British colony.
In 2019, 7,630 Britons arrived in the country and more than 27,000 Guyanese reside in the UK, according to the UK Department of Migration.
