Thrice-weekly direct flights to Baltimore from Bermuda will end on August 27 and resume next May.

USA 3000 Airlines said yesterday it was stopping the route between the Island and Baltimore/Washington International Airport (BWI) during autumn and winter to carry out heavy maintenance on its aircraft.

BWI is the closest airport to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, a facility used by many Bermudians. Patients from the Island will have to fly to Reagan National Airport instead which is about an hour away from the hospital on one of US Airways daily flights.

USA 3000 spokeswoman Christy Ortiz told The Royal Gazette the route was popular with American tourists and Bermudians but the airline only had a small fleet which had to be maintained.

"Over the fall and winter season we have to go through our... heavy maintenance on all of the aircraft," she said. "While most of the flights are being combined, it doesn't work for Bermuda.

"It has meant we have to cease Bermuda services for fall and winter. These heavy checks happen once every five years so it should not affect next year's operation."

Aaron Adderley, general manager at L.F. Wade International Airport, said USA 3000 used to operate flights to Newark, New Jersey and Philadelphia from Bermuda but now only had the Baltimore route. "The USA 3000 flight is a favourite for Bermudians flying up to Johns Hopkins but we do have the US Airways service," he said.

Meanwhile, budget British airline Zoom is hoping to get permission in the next few days to fly a shorter route across the Atlantic cutting its journey time from London to Bermuda by almost two hours.

The low-cost carrier which began operating flights between Gatwick and the Island in June is still waiting to get its ETOPS (extended-range twin operations) licence from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

The certification for long overwater flights will mean Zoom no longer has to keep within an hour-and-a-half of land a requirement which has caused journey times to be far longer than originally advertised.

Premier Ewart Brown told a press conference last month that the CAA approval had been granted and shorter flights down to six hours and 45 minutes from eight hours and 30 minutes would begin today.

But yesterday Zoom spokeswoman Lorna Inglis said: "I can definitely confirm they haven't got it yet but they are hoping to get it within the next day or two." She said the airline was taking the most direct route it could in the meantime.

Mr. Adderley said: "The Premier, when he made his announcement, it was based on information we had received from Zoom at that time.

"Unfortunately, the UK authorities didn't complete that approval when we anticipated they would have so it's taking a bit longer than was first communicated. I know it must be a frustrating situation for the airline, not having this in place. This has dragged on." The CAA did not respond to a request for comment yesterday.