VIPA Board Approves JetBlue Incentive Funding Plus Three Action Items

A top V.I. Tourism Department official told the Port Authority Board of Governors the incentive they are offering a major air carrier doesn’t go far enough.

Tourism Commissioner Joseph Boschulte expressed his concerns at a scheduled board meeting held Tuesday.

The commissioner – who is also a Port Authority board member — spoke just before a vote to approve a one-year incentive package for JetBlue Airways. An agency spokesperson explained after the meeting that the customary incentive offer is two years, but other pending agreements kept the board from offering more at this time.

Boschulte said Tourism had held talks with JetBlue about expanding its service to the Virgin Islands; most recently, the airline added flights between St. Croix and San Juan — the board ratified a vote Tuesday, signaling its favor for that move.

“It’s a step in the right direction, but one year’s worth of incentives is not enough,” Boschulte said. If JetBlue executives were left feeling like they had been shortchanged, they could change their minds about increasing flights to the territory.