MercoPress https://en.mercopress.com/ South Atlantic News Agency en Copyright 2026, MercoPress. https://en.mercopress.com/web/img/en/mercopress-logo.gif MercoPress http://en.mercopress.com/ <![CDATA[Scientists begin first study of whisky matured in Antarctica]]> Isla Marambio spent three years on the ice at an Argentine research station and is now one of eight single malts being analyzed to see how extreme climates shape whisky A team of scientists has begun the first analysis of a whisky matured in Antarctica, aiming to determine what three years at temperatures as low as -35°C did to the spirit's maturation, chemistry and taste.

]]> Mon, 20 Jul 2026 19:01:00 GMT <![CDATA[LATAM resumes direct winter flights from Sao Paulo to Ushuaia, four weekly frequencies]]> LATAM operating from Ushuaia airport Aviation and Tourism publications are reporting that after several years without regular services. Latam has returned to the Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego airport to offer nonstop flights from its main hub Sao Paulo on the continent.

]]> Wed, 08 Jul 2026 19:14:00 GMT <![CDATA[Falklands: good news for FIGAS, next NB Islander assembly "scheduled in the coming weeks"]]> The aircraft, contracted to FIGAS, will be the first to be delivered from the new Bembridge line. A second airframe is now nearing 25% completion Falkland Islands Government Air Service, FIGAS, Britten-Norman has confirmed that the first new Islander to be produced through its fully reshored UK production line has reached 75% completion at the company’s Bembridge facility on the Isle of Wight, with final assembly scheduled in the coming weeks.

]]> Tue, 09 Jun 2026 23:38:00 GMT <![CDATA[Falklands, South Atlantic Airbridge will change UK terminal to East Midlands for four months]]> The change to East Midlands’ airport is technical, essential resurfacing works at RAF Brize Norton The Royal Air Force and British Forces South Atlantic Islands have informed to the Falkland Islands community of temporary changes to the South Atlantic Airbridge, SAA, which links the Islands with RAF Brize Norton in England.

]]> Wed, 03 Jun 2026 08:12:00 GMT <![CDATA[Montevideo's Carrasco airport to fly to 15 destinations in June with 158 weekly flights]]> Carrasco closed 2025 with 2,144,071 passengers, the best figure in its history Carrasco International Airport, in the department of Canelones, will operate in June with 11 airlines and a total of 158 weekly frequencies to 15 direct destinations, according to the schedule released by Aeropuertos Uruguay. The program consolidates the regional and international network of the country's main terminal, with Brazil as the fastest-growing market.

]]> Tue, 02 Jun 2026 21:14:00 GMT <![CDATA[Falklands reaffirms close relationship with IAATO; Marketplace Expo in USA]]> D. Joshua and Pamé D’Avino from Sulivans Shipping Services, Louise Ellis and Jane Clarke from FIDC, Richard Morrison and Rachael Crowie from Penguin Travel, and Steph Middleton from the FITB<br /> Reaffirming the close relationship and collaboration members from the Falkland Islands Development Corporation (FIDC) team led a coalition of Falkland Islands businesses for the inaugural Marketplace Expo during the International Association for Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) Annual meeting, which was held in late April, in Annapolis, Maryland, USA.

]]> Thu, 21 May 2026 18:11:00 GMT <![CDATA[Paraguay aims for 10 million tourists by 2037 with megaparks and foreign capital]]> Paraguay received 3.6 million international visitors in 2025 —2,029,678 tourists and 1,627,516 day-trippers— a 91.24% increase over the previous year The new minister of Paraguay's National Tourism Secretariat (Senatur), Jacinto Santa María, has announced a plan to turn the country into a regional tourism destination and draw up to 10 million annual visitors by 2037, a target that would almost triple the flow recorded in 2025 and which the official aims to reach by attracting major foreign investment to develop theme parks and megaprojects. Santa María, who took office two weeks ago, laid out the proposal in an interview with the EFE news agency and at his first press conference at the head of the agency.

]]> Wed, 13 May 2026 16:38:00 GMT <![CDATA[Ushuaia landfill scrutinized in cruise ship hantavirus outbreak probe]]> Several of the roughly 150 tourists who set sail for Cape Verde on 1 April had visited the landfill, which is frequented by birdwatchers from around the world, drawn by scavenger species Seven kilometers from downtown Ushuaia, the municipal landfill serving Argentina's southernmost city has become one of the focal points of the epidemiological investigation into the hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship. Health teams are searching the site for traces of infected rodents. The landfill is frequented by birdwatchers from around the world, drawn by species such as the white-throated caracara, a scavenger bird endemic to the region.

]]> Fri, 08 May 2026 15:40:00 GMT <![CDATA[Falklands monitor MV Hondius hantavirus outbreak and clarify the route did not include the islands]]> The Falkland Islands Government announced that the KEMH “will review its policies for receiving unwell passengers off cruise ships, on a case-by-case basis” The Falkland Islands Government issued an official statement on Tuesday confirming that it is closely monitoring the hantavirus outbreak aboard the polar cruise ship MV Hondius — a vessel that frequently operates in the archipelago's waters — and took the opportunity to correct information reported by some international media outlets suggesting that the ship had stopped at the islands on its current voyage from Ushuaia. The Falkland Islands Maritime Authority clarified that this information is incorrect and that the Hondius's most recent visit to the archipelago was in mid-February, weeks before the journey that triggered the current health crisis.

]]> Tue, 05 May 2026 22:18:00 GMT <![CDATA[Cape Verde denies docking to hantavirus-hit cruise ship as WHO confirms seven cases]]> Aboard the Dutch-flagged Hondius are 147 passengers and crew members of 23 nationalities, including 17 Americans and at least 4 Canadians Cape Verde's health authorities on Monday denied permission to dock at the port of Praia to polar cruise ship MV Hondius, on board which the World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed seven cases of hantavirus — two of them laboratory-verified — and three deaths linked to the voyage. The decision leaves the nearly 150 people remaining on board in prolonged isolation in Atlantic waters, while medical evacuations are coordinated for patients in the most serious condition and authorities evaluate the possibility of continuing the journey toward the Canary Islands, on Spanish territory.

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