NASSAU, Bahamas, June 06, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- American Airlines has added yet another new flight to The Islands of The Bahamas with nonstop service from Charlotte, North Carolina to Georgetown, Exuma.

The inaugural flight took place on Saturday, June 3 and touched down at Georgetown’s airport shortly after 10:20 a.m. The new route will expose The Bahamas to new visitors allowing for greater market penetration and will operate weekly on Saturdays. The airplane, a Bombardier CRJ-700, has a capacity of 63 seats with nine in first class and 54 in the main cabin.

Bahamas Minister of Tourism, Dionisio D’Aguilar; Senior Director of Airlift Development in the Ministry of Tourism Tyrone Sawyer; American Airlines Managing Director for the Caribbean and Latin America Alfredo Gonzalez; Exuma’s member of Parliament Chester Cooper; and several other senior officials greeted passengers of the inaugural flight.

During a brief ceremony, following the inaugural, Minister D’Aguilar hailed American Airlines as an “extraordinary partner of The Bahamas”.

“Today we assemble to welcome yet another new flight by our long-term partner, American Airlines. Although it is only one flight a week, we see today’s flight as a very significant undertaking. American Airlines serves more islands of The Bahamas than any other airline. In so doing, American Airlines, you help us achieve a very important goal to maximize tourism spending and visitor arrivals throughout as many of our 700 islands as possible,” the Minister said.

Visitors will have much to do on Exuma. The island, made up small cays, has some of the most gorgeous turquoise waters in the Caribbean and is home to the world-famous swimming pigs.

American Airlines Managing Director for the Caribbean and Latin American, Alfredo Gonzalez, said American has 660 flights a day out of its Charlotte hub and over 356 flights a day out of its Miami hub.

“So that combination opens up a lot of opportunities for The Bahamas. We are very excited to be a part of this growth in The Bahamas. We have been flying to The Bahamas for more than 30 years. This is our 30th anniversary, so we are very committed to The Bahamas. We fly to six islands in The Bahamas,” Gonzalez said.

American’s new nonstop flight offers many strategic advantages for Exuma, Minister D’Aguilar noted. “Indeed the 8:10 a.m. departure provides excellent connections to key markets like Houston, New Orleans, Hartford, Atlanta and west coast destinations like Los Angeles and San Francisco,” he said.