The Cuban abandons Argentina permanently and will not travel to the country after 39 years due to lack of supplies

State-owned airline Cubana de Aviación has permanently suspended all its scheduled flights between Havana, Cayo Coco and Buenos Aires after supplier companies in the Argentine Republic refused to supply fuel.

The Cuban Foreign Ministry condemns the US boycott: “The Cuban airline looked for several alternatives to maintain operations that had already been planned and approved by the Argentine National Civil Aviation Administration.”The ministry on the island said in a statement published on Wednesday by official media.

According to the government body, the mixed company Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales (YPF) announced in March its refusal to supply fuel to the Cuban airline, which led to several meetings with transport managers in Argentina without obtaining a “satisfactory response.” The result was the temporary, now permanent, suspension of regular flights between Cuba and Argentina that had been operating for 39 years.

“The application of this arbitrary measure by YPF Argentina is clear evidence not only of the validity of the application of the genocidal US blockade against Cuba, but also of its extraterritorial nature, in addition to its violation of international trade rules.” The Ministry of Foreign Affairs denounced.

Earlier, the state airline stated that “this refusal extended to other airlines contracting with the Cuban airline.” This happened because Cubana does not operate in Argentina with its own aircraft, but rather under a wet lease contract with the Spanish airline Plus Ultra, as reported by the partner portal. Flight line.

Until a few weeks ago, Cubana Airlines operated a weekly flight between Buenos Aires/Ezeiza, Cayo Coco and Havana on an Airbus A330-200 operated by Spain’s Plus Ultra. According to ANAC Argentina, during the first quarter of 2024 the company transported 3,221 passengers with an occupancy rate of 61%.

In the face of this situation, Cubana decided to protect the affected passengers in Cuba and return them on flights from other airlines with flights with Argentina. Meanwhile, other passengers will be able to get a full refund of their flight tickets.