China organizes flight to remove detained passengers in Cuba

Follow our liveblog on international conflicts The airline Air China organized an extraordinary flight to remove dozens of passengers held in Cuba due to successive cancellations, as the island faces an energy crisis aggravated by the US oil embargo. According to the Hong Kong South China Morning Post, the additional flight was scheduled for Monday night, after several weeks of disruptions on the route between Beijing and Havana, with a stopover in Madrid, operated twice a week by the Chinese carrier. The Chinese embassy in Cuba announced on Sunday that flight CA590 was intended for passengers whose regular flights CA866 had been canceled before October 10th. The departure was scheduled for 10:30 PM on Monday (3:30 AM this Tuesday in Lisbon), with a limited number of seats available. The Chinese diplomatic representation warned on October 10th about frequent schedule changes and temporary cancellations on the route for "technical reasons," without providing further details. The operation of the route became particularly difficult since February, when Cuban airports ran out of fuel for aircraft. According to official notices, the shortage affects ten airports in the country, including Havana's, and is expected to last until November. Unable to refuel in the Cuban capital, Air China began making a stop in Nassau, Bahamas, on the return route to Madrid, according to the Cuban independent news agency 14ymedio. A passenger whose flight was canceled on October 10th told 14ymedio that airline officials at Madrid-Barajas airport attributed the situation to construction work on one of the runways in Nassau. The Bahamian airport began the rehabilitation of one of its two runways in August, with completion expected by October 31st. The disruptions have mainly affected Cubans residing in Spain, who frequently use Air China due to lower fares than those offered by Air Europa, the only other airline that provides direct flights between Madrid and Havana. The Chinese carrier resumed the route in May 2024 and has traffic rights that allow it to market tickets only for the route between Madrid and Havana. Passengers held in Madrid reported waits of over 15 hours at the airport, with little information, and difficulties in obtaining refunds or the €600 compensation promised by the airline. Air China is one of the few foreign carriers that continue to operate in Cuba, after at least 11 airlines, including Air Canada, Air France, and Turkish Airlines, suspended flights this year due to the worsening energy crisis. The crisis intensified in January when the United States halted oil supplies from Venezuela to Cuba after the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. In the same month, the US President, Donald Trump, signed an executive order classifying Cuba as an "unusual and extraordinary threat" to the United States. The restrictions worsened the island's economic difficulties, as its electrical system suffered a total collapse in September, leaving millions without electricity. Havana estimates that the US embargo has caused losses of $8.1 billion (more than 7 billion euros) between March 2025 and February 2026, not including the effects of energy restrictions. In August, United Nations experts warned of the growing risk of disease outbreaks in the country. In September, to the UN General Assembly, Trump stated that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was involved in in-depth negotiations with Cuba, although Havana has not communicated any progress. The US President also classified Cuba as a failed state that "is going to fall". [Annie can be present in her father's last years, which will not be long enough for him to know his sentence in the trial for Humberto Delgado's murder. However, she will also become seriously ill. You can already listen to the latest episode of "The Scandals of a Revolutionary," the new Podcast Plus from The Observer. It is available on the Observer website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.]