A top Bahamasair official and a government minister yesterday revealed that executives at the national flag carrier were looking to restock the airline's fleet with more cost-effective aircraft.

Recent reports in The Nassau Guardian revealed that Bahamasair is in deep financial trouble, and the government along with the carrier's board of directors is looking to cut costs at the airline.

Chairman of Bahamasair J. Barrie Farrington and Minister of Public Works and Transport Neko Grant insisted that one way to do that is to replace the airline's aging fleet. For that reason several top government and aviation officials took a look at a $2 million aircraft yesterday morning.

Representatives from the plane's manufacturer Bombardier emphasized the Q400's cost effectiveness and its ability to meet Bahamasair's needs. Bombardier's Manager of Marketing for Commercial Aircraft Derek Clarke said purchasing just one of the Q400s would save Bahamasair $8.64 million a year on its flights from The Bahamas to south Florida.

Moments after the Bombardier representative gave a brief presentation on the Q400, Farrington told the media the aircraft is a major front-runner that is being considered by Bahamasair.

"Bombardier's presence here means that we are looking very seriously at their aircraft," he said. "They have taken active steps in coming to us and saying afford us the opportunity to show what our Q400 will do, and that can help influence us to maybe make a decision that we will include it in our fleet."

According to him, over the past several months Bahamasair's board of directors considered aircraft from at least 15 manufacturers, in the hopes of purchasing an airplane that could save the national flag carrier on operational costs, and replace its fleet of Dash-8 aircraft with newer and more cost-effective airplanes.

Click here to read more in The Nassau Guardian