Following the June launch of much-anticipated direct flights between the Virgin Islands and Miami, leaders are now considering airport upgrades to accommodate an increase in travellers at the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport.
A new pre-clearance system will likely be a “critical component” of a wider upgrade plan implemented in the coming months, Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer said in response to a question from Opposition Leader Ronnie Skelton during a Sept. 5 House of Assembly meeting.
“Preliminary discussions are taking place with the relevant [United States] authorities on this matter,” he said.
Mr. Skelton also asked what can be done to up the airport’s capacity before the winter tourism season, and Mr. Rymer said designs are in the works for increasing the seating in the departure lounge and the space for security areas.
Planners are also looking into expanding into the IAM Jet Centre on the arrivals side of the airport to make more room for immigration and customs.
In turn, the jet centre could be moved into facilities formerly used for Covid-19 measures, according to the minister.
Other potential upgrades, he said, include a new baggage claim belt.
Mr. Rymer added that these decisions are pending approval, though he didn’t say who would need to approve them.
Runway expansion
Opposition member Julian Fraser also asked Mr. Rymer about the government’s larger plans to extend the runway at the Beef Island airport.
The proposed expansion has been a contentious issue since at least 2012, when then-Premier Dr. Orlando Smith’s government started working toward it. Dr. Smith’s government claimed the expansion was critical to boosting the territory’s tourism industry, and it spent millions on related studies, consultations and preliminary works.
However, construction on the runway extension never started.
On Sept. 5, Mr. Fraser asked about the government’s plans for the extension, but Mr. Rymer responded only that the BVI Airports Authority is “focused on the holistic development of the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport based on an airport master plan, which includes the extension of the runway and associated airside infrastructure.”
Plan not public
That master plan, however, has not been provided to the public.
In February, BVIAA Managing Director Kurt Menal declined to provide a copy to the Beacon, saying that it was in draft form and had not yet been presented to the government.
At the time, he estimated that it would be finalised in three to six months and made public sometime after that.
But last month, Mr. Menal did not respond to requests for an update on the plan’s status.
The government did host a stakeholder meeting on Aug. 18 to discuss the expansion plan, but the public and media weren’t invited.
At the meeting, invited public officers and private-sector stakeholders reviewed the timeline of previous attempts to start the expansion and the delays that stalled it, according to a press release issued afterwards.
In the House last week, Mr. Rymer did not give a timeline for when related development decisions would be announced.
“Various options are being considered based on a review of all the studies that have been undertaken in the past that would lead to optimal development and management of the facilities,” he said.