The United States is set to sign a bilateral agreement on Tuesday that will allow 110 scheduled daily flights from U.S. to Cuba, as part of the two nation's goal to restore ties and loosen up a restriction that has prevented direct travel between the two countries for more than half a century.
"The Cuban government (will give) thorough consideration to future requests from the U.S. government to increase this level of service. The two governments reaffirm their commitment to strengthen their already close cooperation in aviation safety and security matters," said Thomas Engle, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Transportation Affairs, according to AFP.
The agreement has been in discussions since last year when U.S. President Barack Obama announced the plan to ease travel restrictions and trade relations with Cuba. The Cuban government will also use the opportunity to enhance its tourism, which has been U.S.-focused, with a lot of American travellers heading for the country before the travel restriction was lifted, even when they would need to pass through other stops like the Bahamas, Canada or Mexico to reach Cuba, according to The Guardian.
U.S. airlines including American, Southwest and United are looking to open up routes to Havana later this year, while this spring, Carnival plans to send the first cruise ship in more than 50 years to Cuba, according to Bloomberg News.
