A plane not a maxi taxi

THE EDITOR: While I am in total agreement that Tobago is spectacularly beautiful, it is impossible to expect CAL, or indeed any other airline, to make a decent profit transporting travellers to Tobago once every hour.

A plane is not a maxi taxi. You cannot park it and wait for sufficient passengers to fill the aircraft before flying off. You need trained staff for each trip. And, as we know, paying a pilot is expensive business and aviation fuel is not cheap.

Where and how will the Tobago House of Assembly find sufficient airlines and endless passengers? Nothing is for free.

Since the pandemic the global aviation industry has suffered. In fact the entire tourism industry lost thousands of clients who will never again step on a plane or bother to visit far-away places.

Tourism is in dire straits and struggling to recover. Plane tickets have increased in price. You need plenty of regular visitors for the tourism industry to be hugely successful. Plus, of course, where will you find the staff?

How many Tobagonians want to work in the hotel industry? Staff will have to actually live in Tobago. Where will they live?

At this point in time, how many people travel to and from Tobago every single day? In fact, how many Tobagonians actually even visit Trinidad every single day? How many Trinidadians actually visit Tobago apart from for special occasions?

Ask yourself this: How many international airlines will want to negotiate with the THA, which has no personal funding?

Is Tobago being so breathtakingly beautiful not just lucky geography?

LYNETTE JOSEPH

Diego Martin