Air Canada suspends flights to Cuba due to aviation fuel shortages, affecting 3,000 customers, while conditions on the island worsen.
Air Canada has suspended service to Cuba due to a shortage of aviation fuel on the island, reports BBC News.
The airline stated that the suspension is currently in effect, but it will repatriate approximately 3,000 customers already in Cuba.
Cuba relies heavily on Venezuela for jet fuel; however, supplies have dwindled since mid-December when the US blocked exports. Air Canada operates about 16 weekly flights to four Cuban destinations from Toronto and Montreal, all of which are now on hold.
WestJet and Air Transat have not yet suspended their flights. This move comes amid worsening conditions on the island, where rolling blackouts have left residents struggling without reliable electricity.
The crisis has deepened since the Trump administration confiscated Venezuelan oil tankers and enforced an oil blockade. President Trump has threatened tariffs on countries supplying oil to Cuba, stating that the island 'will be falling pretty soon' without Venezuelan support.
Cuba's Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla has asserted that the country has 'the absolute right to import fuel' from any willing exporter without interference from the US.
