Martinique has become more accessible to US travelers thanks to newly expanded service from American Eagle Airlines. Beginning May 1, 2009, American Eagle will offer daily service between its hub in San Juan, Puerto Rico and Fort-de-France, the capital of Martinique.

Republic Airways Holdings has reported preliminary passenger traffic results for March 2009. The company generated 871.8 million revenue passenger miles (RPMs), a 0.3 percent decrease from the same month last year, while available seat miles (ASMs) increased 3.9 percent.

American Eagle will bump its San Juan-Martinique service to seven days a week on May 1. The current schedule has four weekly flights.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced that it has tentatively awarded US Airways new route authority to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The flight number and aircraft for the daily service will originate in US Airways’ Philadelphia hub, fly to the airline’s largest hub in Charlotte, N.C. and then on to Rio de Janeiro.

British Airways has invested £5 million in new advanced technology to reduce the delays and disruption caused by fog and poor visibility at Heathrow Airport. BA is the first commercial airline to introduce the onboard Microwave Landing System, which became operational on March 25.

Air Jamaica will boost its roundtrip service this summer between New York Kennedy and Grenada to four weekly flights, up from the current two.