Barbuda airport nears completion, set to welcome LIAT 2020’s first flight

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Cabinet yesterday said it was confident LIAT would take to the skies in early August
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By Samantha Simon

[email protected]

Barbuda’s new international airport is on the brink of welcoming commercial flights, with the re-launched LIAT airline poised to make its first landing on the island.

During yesterday’s post-Cabinet briefing, Chief of Staff Lionel Hurst provided updates on the airport’s progress and LIAT’s impending return to the skies.

“Everything is ready in Barbuda. The runway is ready, the staff are in place for receiving flights,” he stated.

He told the nation that LIAT’s relaunch will coincide with the airport’s opening.

“When LIAT takes off from Antigua as a commercial carrier, the first place it will land will be in Barbuda; that is the expectation, at the new airport in Barbuda,” Hurst said.

The new airport currently boasts a 6,100-foot runway with plans in place to extend it by an additional 2,000 feet, bringing the total length to over 8,000 feet.

This expansion will significantly enhance the airport’s capabilities, allowing it to accommodate larger aircraft and potentially attracting a wider range of visitors.

However, it has not been welcomed by all. The airport remains the subject of legal action by campaigners opposed on environmental grounds.

Hurst highlighted the benefits to tourism, particularly from wealthy visitors arriving by private jet.

“We anticipate that some of them will now be going directly to Barbuda and not landing in Antigua at all,” he said.

The airport may also serve as a refuelling point for larger aircraft making transatlantic flights, due to the country’s prime positioning in the centre of the Caribbean archipelago.

Hurst said the FBO is also in a “state of readiness”.

He noted that Immigration, Customs, and police personnel will be in place in time for the opening.

Cabinet yesterday said it was confident LIAT would take to the skies in early August. However, the exact opening date for both the Barbuda airport and LIAT’s relaunch remains uncertain.

The primary hurdle appears to be still pending approval from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB).

Hurst explained that the government is still waiting to receive all necessary documentation from the CDB to finalise the transfer of ownership of the aircraft from LIAT 1974 Limited to the new entity, which is owned by Antigua and Barbuda.

Additionally, there’s an ongoing discussion about repurposing $12.1 million that Antigua and Barbuda paid to the CDB for three aircraft.

The government is seeking to use these funds to pay former LIAT workers awaiting severance.

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