Panama City, Panama, Dec. 9, 2014 – Copa Airlines {NYSE: CPA}, subsidiary of Copa Holdings, S. A, and member of the Star Alliance global airline network, today begins direct flights to Santa Clara, Cuba, from the Hub of the Americas at Tocumen International Airport, connecting to destinations throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.

“People who love nature, idyllic beaches and exotic locales will want to vacation in this fantastic destination, which offers a diverse tourism experience,” said Copa CEO Pedro Heilbron. “On one hand, they’ll have the city of Santa Clara, full of history and Cuban tradition, and on the other, just one hour away, Cayo Santa María, with its great variety of all-inclusive hotels and eight 5-star hotels.”

The new Copa flight not only strengthens the airline’s route network by increasing access to destinations in Cuba, it also significantly enhances Cuba’s connectivity with Latin America, offering the most direct and quickest way to connect from Santa Clara to cities such as Santiago, Chile; Cali, Barranquilla and Bogotá, Colombia; and Lima, Peru. In-transit passengers do not have to go through Customs/Immigration.

In addition, visitors and tourists can drive the 48-kilometer seaside highway to Cayo Santa Maria, called the Caibarién Causeway, which has earned the international “Puente de Alcántara” award for the best civil works of Ibero-America.

Flight CM237 will operate Tuesdays and Saturdays, departing Panama City, Panama, at 9:05 a.m. and arriving at the Abel Santa María Airport in Santa Clara at 11:30 a.m. The return flight, CM238, will depart Santa Clara at 12:20 noon the same days of the week, arriving at Tocumen International Airport in Panamá at 2:42 p.m.

Copa Airlines’ on-board service on the flights includes complementary meals and drinks, a 12-channel audio-visual entertainment system in English, Spanish and Portuguese, with new movies each month and free headphones.