Cayman Airwaysoperations settling down under new Caymanian management
Improved schedule& revenue opportunities under review
Beginning with the arrival of the National Flag Carrier's 'QuickChange' aircraft , VP-CYB - possibly this weekend, CAL is lookingto a revision of its existing schedule and utilization of allthree pieces of equipment to boost the revenue of the airline.

Additionally, "a focus is being directedtowards rebuilding the customer base and service the public expectsof us" the acting CEO Mr. Mike Adam confirmed recently. Ofparticular interest, will be the "opportunities which areavailable to utilize our aircraft" he continued.

Without elaborating on what these "opportunities"are "at this time" Mr. Adam revealed that there willbe improved seating to allow more leg room on the existing equipment,and the implementation of a Business Class section "beforetoo long."

The lease will remain in place for the useof First Air' 727-100 and an additional crew has been broughtin to supplement the one that is already here. With First Air'sequipment originating from Grand Cayman, the airline is in a positionto respond to the flying public's demands as outlined in the airline'sschedule - and for charters to other Caribbean and Latin Americandestinations.

The present lease for First Air will provideCAL with guaranteed service until the 17th of April -- with acontingency to keep this arrangement in place until the 30th ofApril - at which time all three of the airline's aircraft willbe in place.

With Mr. Adam in the seat of authority overthe day to day operations of CAL - the previous acrimonious relationshipbetween management, the airline's pilots and staff also has appearedto have eased.

Hotel Occupancybounds back after sluggish start - Season extending to May
The Y2K scare about traveling overseas impacted many who had madeplans to travel to the Cayman Islands this past Christmas andNew Years.

What is traditionally a bumper harvest ofvisitors - was instead a half bushel as occupancies dipped toall-time lows of 50 percent and less at the major hoots and condominiumsavailable for rental to tourists.

Meanwhile, the good news is - starting fromaround the Valentine's Day there has been a marked increase ofvisitors coming in - filling hotels and condos 80 to 90 percentcapacity.

According to Mr. Doug Sears, the GeneralManager for Hyatt Regency: "Occupancy is now quite strong..and we hope to have a really good season owing to the fact thatEaster is also arriving late this year. He continued, "Weare also seeing an increased revenue in the services providedfor our guests." This meant that guests are now spendingmore in the hotels restaurants and lounges.

"We have seen growth in the bookingof higher ticketed rooms as well" said Mr. Sears, notingthat the Hyatt's beachside units and the luxury villas they havein their rental pool from private owners, are frequently askedfor.

Since the closure of the Holiday Inn (300-plusrooms) and the Grand Pavilion (65 units) about a year ago - whichcatered mainly for the 'mid-range' spender - there has been alull in traffic to the restaurants who depend on this trade tosupplement a portion supplied by local restaurants.

Encouragingly, with the coming on streamof the 109-unit Comfort Suites which was developed by local businessman,Burns Rutty, who also built the Sleep Inn - and the Sunshine Suiteswhich opened 50 percent of its 132-unit development last December,has contributed to the inventory of hotel rooms catering to the'mid-range' tourist. The remaining 66 units will be opened nextmonth.

The opening of these suite-hotels, is welcomedby the many restaurateurs - as they are the profile of touristswho spend money off a hotel compound... because these propertiesdo not put an emphasis on feeding guests - rather they are moreinterested in selling rooms.

Mr. William Connolly, President of the CaymanIslands Hotel and Condominium Association also confirmed thathis membership are relieved by "the way traffic has pickedup." He continued: "We are looking at a very deep Seasonwith bookings coming in for May. We may also have the best SummerSeason this year, if the trend we are now seeing continues."

Departmentof Tourism's (DOT) Marketing Manager's contract not renewed
Mr. David Shields, who held thepost of Assistant Director/Marketing and Promotions, returnedto Jamaica this morning. There has been no announcement as yetas to who will be replacing Mr. Shields.

However, it has been suggested that thepost may be offered to a Caymanian, in lieu of the recent drivefor ensuring that there is succession of local personnel to seniormanagement posts. It is hoped that Government will set an examplein the case of a replacement of Mr. Shield.

With the absence of many of their personnelwho are off island this week, the DOT's main office at CricketSquare is quite impacted. It was learnt that of the 30 or so membersof staff, only 10 were at their posts earlier this week.

Cayman NetNews' Weekly Newspaper on sale at newsstandstomorrow
At 25 cents, it is the best weekendcompanion everyone in the Cayman Islands will cherish. This weeklyproduction will carry re-caps and expanded coverage of our dailyreports - plus an abundance of other features.

This new Newspaper will supplement the dailyreports which are up-dated and uploaded to the Internet. ComputerBrowsers, will want to continue checking the website www.caymannetnew.comregularly during the day so that they will get firsthand ..."Newsas it happens .. when it happens."