Above: the inaugural flight from Manchester

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The first Thomas Cook flight from Manchester touched down in St Lucia on Sunday afternoon, the first of the charter carrier’s new nonstop flights to the island.

Fly Thomas Cook is operating weekly Sunday flights on a specially-configured Airbus A330, leaving Manchester at 7:00 AM GMT and arriving at 3:00 PM local time.

Thomas Cook also owns the Condor brand, which St Lucia’s Tourist Board said could help St Lucia benefit through connections in Europe.

“By flying to ‘Simply Beautiful’ Saint Lucia, you have signaled to us and perhaps most importantly to the British traveler, that Saint Lucia is the Caribbean getaway of choice for their vacation,” said Thaddeus Antoine, chairman of the St Lucia Tourist Board’s Airlift Committee. “Such a partnership we value immensely.”

The new flight has a capacity of 325 seats. It will be accompanied by two brands of Thomas Cook, Tropical Shores and Airtours, beginning to sell to Saint Lucia.

“Thomas Cook was simply delighted to add Saint Lucia as another destination on its year-round schedule service,” said Thomas Cook Aviation Director James Burrows.