Emirates (EK, Dubai International) has indefinitely deferred the launch of flights to Panamá City Tocumen International after it failed to secure adequate bilateral approvals for codesharing flights across Central America through partner, Copa Airlines (CM, Panamá City Tocumen International).
Bloomberg reports Emirates only managed to secure approvals from three or four of the thirteen countries ahead of its original February route launch date. Given the delays, the launch eventually slipped to March before being postponed to either late 2016/early 2017.
“Panama was a sort of entry point for South and Central America for us and has huge potential, but we needed to get the aero-political structures in place,” Emirates president Timothy Clark said.
Clark added that staff already hired in Panama would be retained while efforts to resolve the bilateral issues are underway.
