As Routes Americas 2012 comes to an end, the Minister of Tourism and Aviation has identified more than a dozen airlines with great potential for The Bahamas.
The major event at Atlantis was the first time the country has played host, and only the second time it has ever been held in the Caribbean.
Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace told Guardian Business the hope is to aggressively pursue the hundreds of millions of prospective tourists right in the country's back door - Latin America.  While some stakeholders might have daily direct service on their lips from Panama, the minister is thinking bigger.
He believes twice daily service could soon become a reality.
"Panama is a wonderful hub," he said.
"So many countries in South America can connect through there.  So I believe we are still only scratching the surface, in terms of cultivating centers such as Brazil or Columbia.  We want to see them become non-stop service, or perhaps go through Panama."
Of the 60 airlines in attendance at Routes Americas 2012, TAM Airlines, the national carrier of Brazil, was indeed in attendance.
"There are at least 15 airlines we want to arrange service with to The Bahamas," he added.
"The Ministry of Tourism and Aviation has been putting packages together for these airlines, as we did with Copa Airlines, in an effort to create public/private partnerships.  We all go at this together.  It's our hallmark."
Vanderpool-Wallace reported strong support from the hundreds of delegates for the redevelopment of Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA). In that sense, he felt Routes Americas couldn't be better timed.
The minister said he was encouraged by the steady presence of U.S. carriers, and new faces such as Allegiant Air and Alaska Airlines.  He told Guardian Business the U.S. market seems to be recovering, and in particular, the country needs to consider unconventional routes as well. JetBlue, for example, started flying out of a domestic airport in Westchester late last year.
He envisioned Allegiant and Alaska Airlines could follow a similar pattern.
"Preclearance brings up an incredible competitive advantage.  We'll look at those markets that are quite affluent and provide non-stop service," Vanderpool-Wallace said.  "So we potentially have more non-stop markets of this nature than anywhere else in the region."
For starters, the minister is eagerly awaiting the arrival of Delta Airlines, which will be restarting its direct flights from New York on March 2.

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