Air China adds Havana flight for passengers stranded by cancellations
An extra flight was scheduled for October 19 after repeated cancellations on Air China’s route through Madrid, with limited seats for eligible passengers.
Air China arranged an extra flight from Havana, Cuba, for passengers stranded by cancellations on its service through Madrid, according to the South China Morning Post. In an October 18 notice, the Chinese embassy in Cuba said the additional flight, CA590, was scheduled for October 19, giving affected travellers a possible route out of the country.
The embassy said passengers whose CA866 flights were cancelled before October 10 could complete boarding procedures for CA590 at Havana’s José Martí International Airport from 17:00 on October 19. The extra flight was scheduled to depart at 22:30 that day. Seats were limited, the embassy warned, and it advised eligible passengers to watch for schedule changes and arrive early.
Who could board the extra Havana flight
The arrangement targeted travellers affected by cancellations before the embassy’s October 10 cutoff, rather than everyone booked on the route. The South China Morning Post reported that dozens of Air China passengers had been stranded in Cuba after successive cancellations. The embassy’s notice sets out when eligible passengers could begin boarding procedures, but it does not establish how many secured seats or whether CA590 departed as scheduled.
The disrupted CA866 service normally runs twice a week between Beijing and Havana via Madrid, the South China Morning Post reported. That makes the cancellations significant for passengers using one of Cuba’s remaining direct air connections with Europe. The additional flight offered a specific departure for some affected travellers, subject to the limited capacity identified by the embassy.
Why the Beijing–Havana route has been disrupted
An embassy warning on October 10 had already alerted passengers to frequent schedule changes and temporary cancellations, according to the South China Morning Post. In its later notice, the embassy attributed recent changes and several CA866 cancellations to technical reasons, without giving a more specific cause. Travellers on the route had therefore faced disruption before the extra flight was announced.
Cuba’s aviation fuel shortage forms part of the wider operating backdrop. The South China Morning Post reported that the route had been difficult to operate since Cuban airports ran out of jet fuel in February. It also reported that official notices extended the shortage at 10 airports, including Havana, until November. The embassy did not say that fuel availability caused the CA866 cancellations covered by its notice.
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Sources and context
- Air China scrambles to fly stranded passengers out of fuel-starved CubaSouth China Morning Post
- La Embajada de China en Cuba recuerda a los pasajeros prestar atención al vuelo adicional temporal de Air ChinaEmbassy of the People’s Republic of China in Cuba
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.