PJIA CEO and President Michael Cleaver and Air Caraïbes founder Jean Paul Dubreuil (right) exchange gifts at the Air Caraïbes ceremony on Friday. (Robert Luckock photo)
AIRPORT--After a three year hiatus, a welcome ceremony was held at Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) on Friday afternoon for the re-starting of Air Caraïbes’ direct transatlantic service from Paris Orly to St. Maarten.
The Air Caraïbes Airbus A330-200 taxiing to the gate on arrival Friday afternoon. (Robert Luckock photo)
The Gospel choir “Gospel for All” gave a performance for guests in the Gate A1 departure lounge. (Robert Luckock photo)
The Airbus A330-200 arrived filled with passengers, Air Caraïbes executives and VIPs on board before a ribbon-cutting was held on the tarmac with PJIA President and CEO Michael Cleaver and French-side tourism office officials. Unfortunately local press were not on the airline’s list of persons to witness the ribbon-cutting, according to the airport.
A press conference was then held at Gate 1 with Cleaver, Air Caraïbes’ Administrator and Founder Jean Paul Dubreuil, CEO Groupe Dubreuil Aero Grégory Jamet, and Air Caraïbes Deputy CEO Eric Michel.
“The return of Air Caraibes represents renewed confidence in St. Maarten, in our resilience and strength of our position as a gateway to the Northeast Caribbean,” said Cleaver in his welcoming remarks. “We are honoured that you see value in our island. Your presence strengthens our position as a regional hub and gives even more travellers a chance to experience what makes St. Maarten/Saint Martin special.
“This direct connection brings our residents and our French Caribbean family closer to Europe. It opens more travel choices, strengthens cultural ties, and supports tourism and business growth. At St. Maarten airport we are constantly working to strengthen our facilities, our partnerships, and the experience we offer to everyone who travels through our doors.”
Cleaver thanked his airport team. “Moments like this don’t just happen. They come from all of your hard work, coordination and commitment to delivering a smooth and safe airport experience. Let's keep building connections to move our island forward together,” he said.
It has been 16 years since Air Caraïbes made its very first inaugural flight to St. Maarten on December 9, 2009. The airline stopped operating during the COVID pandemic, restarted again in 2022, then stopped again citing high fuel and operating expenses.
The flight to St. Maarten will be operated by an Airbus A330-200 with a capacity of 303 passengers (12 in Madras class, 24 in Caribbean and 267 in Soleil). It will leave PJIA at 6.30pm and arrive in Paris at 7:40am the following day. In the return direction, it will leave Paris Orly at 11:45am and land in St. Maarten at 3:45pm.
“The A330-200 is an older generation aircraft, but we are in a transition stage to acquire the latest generation of aircraft for our fleet, namely the 350-900 which will also serve St. Maarten in the future,” said Jamet. “We are working with Airbus to get the certification. The teams are
working hard and next winter we hope to operate with the A350-900.”
There will be three flights per week in the high season, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and two in the low season. Jamet indicated in the summer of 2026 flights may be suspended to St. Maarten due to capacity reduction at Orly but will resume for the 2026/2027 high season, possibly with the 350-900.
“But in the summer we will be disclosing the future schedules,” he emphasised.
The speeches ended with Cleaver and Jean Paul Dubreuil exchanging gifts. A surprise added bonus to the ceremony was the Paris-based Gospel Choir “Gospel for All” who were on the flight. They gave a rousing performance of Gospel songs as refreshments were being served.
