Introduction of Air Caraïbes‘ Short Widebody Route
This winter, Air Caraïbes, a lesser-known carrier internationally, will start a very short widebody service. The route will be operated in a triangular pattern: Paris Orly-Samana-Santo Domingo-Paris Orly. The Samana-Santo Domingo leg is wholly within the Dominican Republic, without traffic rights. The service will use the 389-seat Airbus A350-900, with the airline owning four of these aircraft. The block time for Samana to Santo Domingo is 40 minutes, covering merely 50 nautical miles (93 km). However, this will not be the world’s shortest twin-aisle operation by time or distance.
Details of Air Caraïbes’ Upcoming Service
According to OAG data, Air Caraïbes has flown from Paris Orly to Santo Domingo for 13 years but never to Samana. This will change as the airline plans to start flights in just over two months. The focus is on outbound tourism from Paris and visits by friends and relatives to Francophone destinations in the Caribbean.
- The only available link from Europe to Samana, located on the north coast of the Dominican Republic.
- First flight departs from Paris on December 15, with frequencies increasing from weekly to twice weekly by early 2026.
- The stop at Santo Domingo offers a more cost-effective and lower-risk way to serve Samana.
Over the past two decades, Samana has received flights from various airports, including Copenhagen, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, etc.
| Leg | Winter Schedule; Local Times |
|---|---|
| Paris Orly-Samana | 11:45-16:20 (9h 35m) |
| Samana-Santo Domingo | 17:30-18:10 (40 minutes)* |
| Santo Domingo-Paris Orly | 20:20-09:50+1 (8h 30m) |
* No traffic rights
The World’s Shortest Widebody Flights of 40 Minutes or Less
Between December 2025 and February 2026, several of the world’s shortest scheduled widebody services by block time (chocks-off-to-chocks-on) include the following:
| Minimum Block Time: December-February | Widebody Route* | Operations** |
|---|---|---|
| 30 minutes | Zanzibar-Dar es Salaam | Air Tanzania; three weekly 787-8. KLM; two weekly 787-10. |
| 30 minutes | Bonaire-Curaçao | Corendon; two weekly A350-900 using leased equipment. |
| 35 minutes | St Kitts-Antigua | British Airways; two weekly 777-200ER. |
| 35 minutes | Punta Cana-Santo Domingo | Air Caraïbes; one-time A350-900. |
| 40 minutes | Bandar-Kota Kinabalu | Royal Brunei; weekly 787-8. |
| 40 minutes | Banjul-Dakar | Brussels Airlines; two weekly A330-300. |
| 40 minutes | Billund-Copenhagen | Sunclass; weekly A330-300/A330-900. |
| 40 minutes | Brazzaville-Kinshasa | Air France; four weekly A350-900. |
| 40 minutes | Freetown-Conakry | Brussels Airlines; two weekly A330-300. |
| 40 minutes | Lomé-Accra | Brussels Airlines; four weekly A330-300. |
| 40 minutes | Malabo-Douala | Air France; three weekly 787-9/A330-200. |
| 40 minutes | Samana-Santo Domingo | Air Caraïbes; one to two weekly A350-900. |
* The direction indicates the minimum time.
** When other airlines use twin-aisles, the minimum block time exceeds 40 minutes.
Insights on Air Tanzania’s Short 787-8 Route
Air Tanzania is a small East African airline. With a government-owned fleet, it has 16 aircraft, including models like the 787, A220-300, and Dash 8, critical for its China routes. Its fleet supports a service linking Dar es Salaam to Guangzhou via Zanzibar.
- The carrier operates this route three times a week, primarily for traders and Chinese expatriates.
- Booking data from July 2024 to June 2025 shows over 800,000 round-trip passengers between Africa and Guangzhou, with Dar es Salaam being the third-largest market.
- Air Tanzania’s flight TC403 leaves Zanzibar at 07:30, reaching Dar es Salaam at 08:00, taking as little as 12 minutes.
