CTO honours Caribbean Airlines

Tyrone Tang, CEO of Caribbean Airlines, with CTO award for outstanding service. Gerald V. Paul photo.
Tyrone Tang, CEO of Caribbean Airlines, with CTO award for outstanding service. Gerald V. Paul photo.

Caribbean Airlines was presented with a special award for outstanding service by the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) during Caribbean Week Canada here.
Tyrone Tang, CEO and CFO Caribbean Airlines, received the One Sea, One Voice Award on Tuesday which recognizes the airline’s ongoing contribution to providing decades of service and development in the region.
“We are delighted to receive this award,” Tang said in thanking CTO for the award before an audience of travel professionals and media representatives.
Tang, who studied at McMaster University and worked for PriceWaterhouse, has worked in numerous businesses in Canada and Trinidad and noted that “When I joined Caribbean Airlines 18 months ago, the first thing I said, like David Rudder, was “Trini to De Bone,” with a Caribbean love, of course!
He said Caribbean Airlines has formed a core management team based on consultative relations and he sees this committee as a place to bounce off ideas and have an affable implementation as they go forward.
“We went through a strategic business plan last year. The recommendations will be implemented. The decisions taken today will impact Caribbean Airlines for years to come,” Tang said.
Tang said significant changes see will Caribbean Airlines moving to the Passenger Service System and they will embrace booking via Amadeus, which is comparable to other major systems in the travel marketplace.
Ticketing through GDS will be available in December with check-in available in March.
The move to Amadeus will also see consolidation of the airline’s 7th Heaven and Caribbean Miles loyalty programs.
Tang said the airline’s plans dovetail with CTO’s vision to position the Caribbean as the most desirable, year- round, warm-weather destination by 2017.
Also in the works is complete interior remodeling in all of its aircraft which will see the planes redone with new features, including new entertainment screens.
With Trinidad established as Caribbean Airlines’ new major hub (with Jamaica as a secondary hub) new routes are under consideration for 2016 with the goal of growing the airline’s leisure business.
This is good news as the region continues to perform well, attracting visitors at a greater rate during the first half of the year than any other region of the world, the CTO event heard. During that period, the Caribbean outpaced the global average by 1.7% and this is the only region to register growth of five per cent.
CTO General Secretary and CEO Hugh Riley said political and economic conditions increased airline seat capacity, improved airport facilities, increased room stock- “as hotel chains established themselves in our destinations” – and new initiatives in the marketplace, all contributed to this success.
Caribbean Airline’s new transit arrangements in Trinidad now make it possible for customers on certain flights to connect from Guyana seamlessly to many of the airline’s connection points to other countries.
Caribbean Airlines is supporting its commitment to expand service to Guyana as official partner for a five-day media familiarization trip hosted by Guyana Tourism Authority for international journalists. The trip is to expose Guyana’s vast natural attractions to American nature-lovers, adventure seekers and cultural enthusiasts.
“As the airline with flag carrier status, Caribbean Airlines is committed to the people of Guyana with whom we have enjoyed a long legacy of cooperation providing consistent and reliable service since our start in 2007,” said CAL Head of Corporate Communications, Dionne Ligoure.
CTO is encouraging everyone to participate in a social media contest in which people can post photos of themselves in the Caribbean using the Caribbean Tourism Month hashtag #CTM2015.