China’s flag carrier scrambles to fly stranded passengers out of fuel-starved Cuba

Dozens of Air China passengers stranded in Cuba by successive cancellations were due to fly out on an extra flight on Monday, as a US oil embargo deepens the island’s energy crisis. The disruption has hit one of Cuba’s last direct air links to Europe, the Chinese carrier’s twice-weekly route between Beijing and Havana via Madrid.

Air China added flight CA590 for travellers whose regular CA866 service was cancelled before October 10, the Chinese embassy said in a notice on Sunday. The flight was due to leave at 10.30pm local time, and seats were limited, it said.

The embassy had warned on October 10 that flights on the route faced frequent schedule changes and temporary cancellations for “technical reasons”, without giving details.

The route has been hard to operate since February, when Cuban airports ran out of jet fuel. Official notices extend the shortage at 10 airports, Havana included, until November.