Alaska Air cites Trump policy in ending flights to Havana

SEATTLE (AP) - Alaska Airlines says it will soon end flights to Havana, and it is citing the Trump administration's new restrictions on travel to the island nation.

The airline said Tuesday that its last flight between Los Angeles and the Cuban capital is planned for Jan. 22.

Last week, the administration put into effect rules that ended so-called people-to-people travel, which had let individual Americans visit Cuba without going through a sponsoring group or university.

Alaska says 80 percent of its passengers on Cuba flights use the people-to-people allowance. It says that because of the change, it will move planes from Cuba to routes with strong demand, and rebook affected customers on another airline or refund their money.

The Seattle-based airline began flying to Havana in January.