On Tuesday and Wednesday, Cubana de Aviacion flights to Buenos Aires were canceled because fuel suppliers in Argentina refused to serve the airline.
The companies have invoked “provisions of the United States blockade against Cuba” to not supply the aircraft of the Cuban state airline.
Additionally, this measure has affected other airlines contracted by Cubana de Aviacion, preventing them from fulfilling commitments to passengers.
This surprising decision took place despite the Cuban flights being approved by the Argentina’s National Civil Aviation Administration (ANAC).
In response to this situation, the airline has decided to assist affected passengers in Cuba by sending them back on flights operated by other airlines connecting to Argentina. Other passengers will be eligible for a full refund of their airfare. ⠀
During the first quarter of 2024, the Cuban airline transported 3,221 passengers with an occupancy rate of 61 percent. The number of Argentine travelers to Cuba increased by 44 percent compared to the same period last year, reaching 12,753 people.
It’s the threat of a good example right at the US’s borders. Even with the embargo, Cuba has free healthcare, housing, better LGBT rights, higher life expectancy, and a proper democracy unlike the US. A thriving Cuba might threaten the US capitalist class and force them to make concessions to the working-class, like the Scandanavian countries’ capitalist states had to for being near the USSR (though those have started being undone with the example overthrown).
And it’s not just sanctions, the embargo also prevents companies of other countries from trading with Cuba if they also do so with the US. Which the vast majority of them obviously have to if they want to survive competition.