Philadelphia-to-Cuba flights could start this fall

Flights between Philadelphia and Cuba have been approved to begin this year.

The flights to and from Philadelphia will be on Frontier, which applied in March to operate weekly trips between Philadelphia International Airport and Cuba.

Frontier said it plans to fly between Philadelphia and Camagüey four times weekly (Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays) starting Dec. 15; once weekly, on Saturdays, between Philadelphia and Matanzas, starting Jan. 7, 2017; and three times weekly (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays) between Philadelphia and Santa Clara, starting Dec. 15. Precise timetables and costs were not immediately known. Frontier said plans could change if additional routes are approved.

Airport officials in Philadelphia cheered the news.

"We're delighted that we're going to be offering the opportunity for our passengers to go to Cuba," said Mary Flannery, a spokeswoman for the airport.

Flannery called the flights "another great opportunity for people from this region," and said travelers from across the Northeast who want to visit Cuba would likely look to Philadelphia for their trips.

Overall, the federal Department of Transportation said Friday that it had approved six airlines to begin flights between the United States and Cuba.

The trips would be between Cuba and five U.S. airports: Philadelphia, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Chicago, and Minneapolis/St. Paul.

The airlines approved are American, Frontier, JetBlue, Silver, Southwest, and Sun Country. They will fly to nine Cuban airports: Camagüey, Cayo Coco, Cayo Largo, Cienfuegos, Holguín, Manzanillo, Matanzas, Santa Clara, and Santiago de Cuba.

Decisions on flights to Havana will be made later, officials said.

American Airlines, the dominant carrier at Philadelphia International Airport, will operate its Cuba flights out of Miami.

American is approved to operate two daily flights from Miami, one to Holguin and the other to Santa Clara and Varadero, and one daily flight between Miami and Camaguey and then Cienfuegos.

The new flights come after U.S. and Cuban officials signed an agreement in February to restart passenger flights between the nations for the first time in more than 50 years.

"Last year, President Obama announced that it was time to 'begin a new journey' with the Cuban people," U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a statement. "Today, we are delivering on his promise by relaunching scheduled air service to Cuba after more than half a century."

U.S. law still prohibits tourist travel to Cuba, but a dozen categories of travel are permitted, including family visits, official business, journalist visits, professional meetings, and educational and religious activities. The Obama administration has eased rules to where travelers are free to design their own "people-to-people" cultural exchanges with little oversight.