and has since serviced thousands of passengers, according to general manager of American Airlines in Bermuda Mrs. Carole DeCouto. PanAm, one of the Island's first carriers, had been flying to the Island since the 1940s. And in 1975, PanAm and American agreed to orchestrate an airline route swap, whereby American would service Bermuda and other Caribbean destinations and PanAm would service Hawaii and certain Pacific destinations. The Caribbean division, which includes Bermuda, Miami, Latin America and the Caribbean, was headed up by senior vice president of American Airlines Mr. Peter Dolara. And Bermuda became a major player in the Caribbean market. Liaising closely with Bermuda, Mr. Dolara was instrumental in getting the Raleigh/Durham flight off the ground six years ago, noted Mrs. DeCouto. "He keeps close ties with us,'' she said. "And we meet every other month at conferences.'' The first general manager to head up the Bermuda offices was Mr. John Neilson, who worked until his retirement in 1985. He has since moved to Florida, where he lives with his wife, said Mrs. DeCouto. American Mr. Chris Warner took over from Mr. Neilson until he was given another assignment two years later. He then moved to Lake Tahoe and Reno before going to the Cayman Islands, where he presently heads up the American offices. Mrs. DeCouto, who has worked for American Airlines since its inception in Bermuda, became the general manager in November, 1988.

Originally from Quebec, Mrs. DeCouto, who worked in American's reservations department for more than a decade followed by a year in passenger service before being promoted to general manager, came to Bermuda in 1970. "I met my (Bermudian) husband the year I arrived in Bermuda and we married in 1972,'' she said, adding that the couple now have two sons. She noted that approximately 30 percent of American's employees have been with the airline since it first came to Bermuda, not including those who have retired. "It's great -- we have a lot of original staff members here,'' she said. When American started in Bermuda, it flew to two destinations including Boston and New York. From 1975 to 1989, the airline flew mostly to Boston and New York, but for short periods, it also serviced Newark, Philadelphia and Chicago, said Mrs. DeCouto. As well, the Raleigh/Durham route was added to American Airline's agenda in 1989 and lasted until 1994, when it was cancelled.

Presently American out of Bermuda flies only to Kennedy airport in New York.

There are two flights each day, seven days a week. Mrs. DeCouto said: "We're reviewing several destinations at present. But we've made no definite plans.

We are, however, looking into a Miami flight for next spring. "We've never had a Miami flight out of Bermuda and it's a big gamble. We have to see what the market's like.'' She added that American's future plans in Bermuda are very much in the hands of Peter Dolara. But the airline is looking to improve productivity and reduce costs. "We'll look at (potential) changes and see if they would improve productivity and we'll go from there,'' she said. PHOTO RESERVATIONS AGENTS -- Ms Georgia Symonds (sitting front) and (left to right) Ms Judy Butterfield, Ms Sharon Raynor and Ms Claudette Ford in American's old terminal office in late 1970.

FORMER TICKET COUNTER -- (From left) Mr. Quinton Ible, Ms Judy Cruz, Mr. Wayne Simmons and Mr. James Robinson are pictured standing in front of the ticket counter at the old airport in the late 1970s.

EARLY AMERICAN AIRLINES -- Agent Ms Claudette Ford, former equipment technician Mr. Randy Masters and agent Ms Judith Butterfield pictured in 1987 at the airport's American Airlines ticket counter.

MINI SUPPLEMENT