BermudAir Launching Anguilla Flights, With New AnguillAir Subsidiary

In August 2023, we saw the launch of BermudAir, a quirky niche airline operating Embraer jets between Bermuda (BDA) and the United States and Canada. The airline now has a fleet of four jets, and serves roughly a dozen destinations.

There’s now an interesting update to the company’s business model, as for the first time, it will start operating scheduled flights that don’t touch Bermuda.

AnguillAir will fly from United States to Anguilla

BermudAir has announced plans to launch AnguillAir, a new subsidiary that will launch flights to Anguilla, which is a British Overseas Territory, much like Bermuda.

This venture will launch in December 2025, with flights to Anguilla (AXA) out of both Baltimore (BWI) and Boston (BOS). For now, this venture will just be seasonal, in winter. Flights in both markets will operate twice weekly, from the middle of December until early April.

While part of the overall BermudAir operation, AnguillAir will have a branded aircraft, with its own identity and design. The airline claims that the introduction of AnguillAir represents the first step in a broader strategy to innovate and grow BermudAir’s operations.

BermudAir is calling this a “powerful new era in Caribbean connectivity,” which is “driven by BermudAir’s signature island hospitality and its vision to link island communities in meaningful and lasting ways.”

Here’s how BermudAir’s CEO, Adam Scott, described this development:

“This is more than a new route—it’s a reflection of what BermudAir was built to do: strengthen island connections, deliver extraordinary service, and create lasting economic value for Bermuda and beyond. We’re proud that, because of the support of Bermudians and the growth in tourism demand, we are now able to extend our reach and share our island hospitality with Anguilla.” 

Here’s what Anguilla’s Minister of Infrastructure, Jose Vanterpool, had to say (honestly, he sounds as excited about this as someone getting a root canal):

“The reopening of the Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport marks a pivotal moment for Anguilla’s economic future. Our agreement with BermudAir to launch nonstop service from the U.S. Northeast is a crucial first step. To support long-term, sustainable growth, we are pursuing a phased, demand-driven expansion plan, which includes extending the runway to accommodate larger aircraft and increased passenger and cargo volumes.” 

BermudAir claims that with its updated schedule, it will suspend flights to Providence (PVD), while flights to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) will operate in winter only. I’m not sure how that helps with paving the way for AnguillAir, since that’s also seasonal in winter. I suspect the routes just haven’t performed very well.

This expansion seems sensible to me

When BermudAir launched operations, I was a bit confused about the viability of the carrier’s business model. Like, how much year-round demand is there from the United States and Canada to Bermuda?

The market is only so large, there’s some seasonality, and ultimately one airline can only gain so much market share, when you’re competing against the existing players. Keep in mind that BermudAir has already significantly altered its business model since launch. When the concept was first announced, BermudAir was going to be an all-business class airline, and the airline ended up backtracking on that plan.

With that in mind, I actually think BermudAir connecting more Caribbean points to North America could be a decent idea:

• The airline has small jets that can land at many airports that can’t be served by larger aircraft (like Anguilla)
• BermudAir has a great cost structure, given the way it acquired its aircraft, labor costs, etc., giving it a big advantage over the legacy US carriers
• Many Caribbean islands don’t have local carriers that fly to the US, meaning many markets are dominated by US carriers with very high fares

So we’ll see how this plays out, but I could see this succeeding, at least compared to the alternatives. There are just two complicated things.

First, there’s the branding — BermudAir is setting up a subsidiary and branding a plane for it, specifically for two seasonal routes? That doesn’t seem terribly efficient. Second, with the airline registered in Bermuda, launching new routes between the United States and other points might not be quite as easy as it would be for a US-based carrier.

Bottom line

BermudAir is launching AnguillAir, a new subsidiary that will fly to and from Anguilla. The airline will initially operate two routes twice weekly, from Baltimore and Boston. This is an interesting direction for BermudAir to take, and frankly, I think it’s pretty logical. There was only so much growth potential in Bermuda, but there are many Caribbean airports that are underserved.

What do you make of BermudAir launching AnguillAir?