Honduran Govt. threatens to shut down TACA

By now you know that the global financial crisis has been chipping away at the core of business markets and the region is not exempted. In the Caribbean we have reported that the Grace Kennedy International’s hardware store chain did not survive. In the Bahamas, Guyana and Turks and Caicos, CLICO has been ordered to wind down its services. And in Belize, CLICO is also facing the possibility of liquidation and is presently under management of Insurance Supervisor Alma Gomez. Now a major airline operating in Central America is facing hard financial times. Taca Airlines may find all its planes in Honduras grounded for the interim. The Honduran government has been providing a variety of services for the regional airline but it is now threatening to suspend the airline’s service if it doesn’t pay a one point three million dollar debt by the end of the week. According to international sources, the El Salvador-based regional carrier began amassing the large debt since 2003. Honduras’ Civil Aviation spokesman, Mario Maldonado said a meeting he held with a Taca representative failed to establish a guarantee of payment. Taca representatives in Belize offered no comment on the situation and did not respond to our questions on whether or not its flights to Belize would be affected. But it’s safe to say that if the airline’s operation is shut down in Tegucigalpa, Belizeans travelling to Honduras will have to look for other options.