WILLEMSTAD - Mid April the new airline JetAir Caribbean wants to take off from Curacao. The company wants to fly several routes of the recently bankrupt InselAir, but certainly not all, says owner Antonio Ribeiro. He doesn't want empty planes.

The first Fokker 70 aircraft arrived at Hato airport two days ago. The aircraft, an ex-KLM city hopper with a seating capacity of 80 passengers, came to Curaçao via the U.S. after thorough maintenance at Fokker services in Asia. In America, the aircraft was repainted in the colors of JetAir. JetAir will operate under the license of United Caribbean Airlines, an already existing operator.

JetAir's second Fokker 70 aircraft will also arrive in Curaçao in April. This aircraft will serve as spare capacity and is intended to guarantee on-time performance for the future operation.

Antonio Ribeiro is the former owner of Curaçao Telecom and Polytronica. He hesitates but finally admits that he finances JetAir Caribbean entirely from his own resources.