U.S., Cuba Re-Establish Commercial Air Travel

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) --  U.S. and Cuban leaders agreed to re-establish commercial air travel between both countries.

Up until now, only charter flights were allowed - meaning this is the first time in more than 50 years that this has happened.

U.S. Transportation officials will travel to Havana, Cuba on February 16th to sign a bilateral arrangement for commercial travel - something that was agreed upon back in December 2015.

Related: Pope Francis, Russian Church Leader In Cuba For Historic Meeting

While U.S. law does not allow travel to Cuba for touristic reasons, the Department of Transportation says the arrangement will make it easier for those who are authorized to travel. Officials said it would also strengthen people to people links between both countries.

Scheduled commercial flights are expected to start sometime later this year.

Click here to read more about U.S.- Cuba Relations.