Dickson Igwe

Mr. Morrison’s short opinion piece inferred that a lengthening of the runway there, add an expansion or redevelopment of the airport terminal and tarmac to cater for large aircraft and increased jet airline traffic was, in his own words, ‘’ an unlikely event.’’

I wish to assert that I believe the Pilot is wrong in making that determination. That unless there are insurmountable physical and financial barriers, and there are apparently no long term hurdles preventing this according to enlightened opinion, then a remake of the Terrance B Lettsome International Airport to cater for the largest aircraft, is indeed only a matter of time, even if that means a number of years. In any case, a study was carried out a number of years ago, apparently by the present Government, which showed that the idea of remodeling and rebuilding the airport to cater for large aircraft was very feasible indeed. Admittedly, there will be a major ecological and environmental impact to the area during and after construction; however, that is usually ‘the price for progress.’

Nearby, St. Martin’s Princess Juliana International Airport has a similar dynamic with Beef Island’s Terrance B Lettsome, in that a thin two lane highway separates a busy and touristy beach from the runway, and a sunset bar and grill at the end of the runway is regularly packed with people. In fact, and incredibly, jet blast is considered a tourist attraction in St. Martin, among a Bohemian sub set who ‘lime’ or ‘hang out’ in the vicinity of the airport, just to catch the odd jet landing there, and there is even a drink at local bars close to the airport named ‘Jet Blast. St. Thomas’ Cyril E King International Airport also possesses a busy road and beach area close to the runway.

So asserting that Beef Island is in some way an oddity cannot be substantiated, and that is despite the depressed state of the global and regional economy, including the global airline business, especially in North America and Europe. And even with oil prices above $100 a barrel, -oil is 40% of airline costs- in this observer’s opinion, there is still no overwhelming barrier preventing the development of Terrance B Lettsome into a regional and international hub type facility, especially when considering the top priority that tourism, a major pillar of the BVI’s twin pillar economy, is being given today.

And this late 2011, new financing options from the Far East and Pacific appear to be gaining traction in the Caribbean: Antigua has recently received financing from Chinese Banks to build a brand new $50 million terminal expansion to deal with an increasing visitor and passenger load. And some of the biggest buyers of airplanes today are non Western countries such as Middle Eastern and Asian states spending tens of billions of dollars on the latest models and equipment: these are new global carriers that will compete with the older more traditional airlines, foreign businesses that will be looking for new routes worldwide, including flying into and out of the Caribbean.

This idea of looking at more diverse sources for financing and business may be something policy negotiators need to bring before the powers that be in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the European Union. In any case, the Northern Atlantic region: North America and Western Europe, is being swiftly overtaken in the economic and power stakes by a new Asian dynamism which even the United States recognizes as the new ‘Super Region’ of the globe.

US President Barack Obama recently determined that Asia and the Pacific is the most crucial region to US economic and geopolitical security today. The Western Coasts of these majestic Americas is where the economic action is taking place increasingly. These Antilles had better wake up to the new reality of the Asian Pacific as emergent ‘Gulliver’ and center of gravity. This will affect the Caribbean in ways still yet unknown, including West Indian tourism and travel!

Consequently, and environmental concerns notwithstanding, an international airline hub facility in the Virgin Islands, probably on Beef island- Anegada may be too expensive an undertaking for now,- is a critical necessity, and will be realized sometime in the near future. Yes, it is imminent!

Add to this a mood in the country that is pro port development, and a belief by the majority of Virgin Islanders that bypassing facilities in St. Martin, Puerto Rico, Antigua, and St. Thomas, and thereby enabling the British Virgin Islands to access global capitals and tourism markets directly by air, is certainly a growing need, even crucial requirement; but that will mean building an international airline hub type facility in the British Virgin Islands.

A truly international airline gateway on Beef Island coupled with an improved seaport facility at Towers or Soper’s Hole on the West End of Tortola, and an improved port infrastructure around the country, will increase tourism revenues, and also improve the national economic infrastructure by providing easier and more efficient access into the country for international travelers and tourists. And the idea that the Virgin Islands could become a major regional and international airline hub in the coming years, with all of the associated, social, developmental, economic, implications and benefits, and even ramifications for the country, was further given a boost recently in both the national and international news media.

Incidentally, a number of recent articles and magazine surveys show that the BVI is a destination that is at the very top of its league, when it comes to places most desirous of travelers to visit. This is the result of what we all know is a gift of divine providence: the BVI’s pristine and paradisiacal geography. However, the BVI is just one among many other pristine and spectacular destinations, and all of these places are probably already building the infrastructure necessary to grab a greater market share of a global tourism industry worth over 10 trillion dollars annually. Incredibly, some countries in the region, with less to offer the international traveler than these Virgin Pearls are today doing just that. International Jet travel into St. Kitts and Nevis is today being aggressively encouraged, and Air Canada is flying directly into Basseterre’s Robert Bradshaw this November 2011.

Opening up the territory to the wider world is no longer an option if BV Islanders wish to grow the tourism economy by leaps and bounds: and this can only be done by providing direct access to a first class destination and tourism product through aggressively prospecting globally for direct flights from the world’s capitals and major population centers into Beef Island, or some other facility in the country. Albeit, this must also be accompanied by complementary development such as increasing the number of quality accommodations; and the improving the country’s physical and social infrastructure: sewage, drainage, hospitals, schools, transportation, including a national hotel training facility as proposed in years past, etc. The new NDP Government certainly has its work cut out in this regard.

The latest rendition to these paradise Antilles, according to a Caribbean News article of October 27, 2011, is the result of 8 million votes cast by Conde Nast Travel Readers, placing this territory high up among the best travel destinations on the planet. The World’s premier travel magazine puts it this way: ‘’ The BVI, the spectacular archipelago of more than 60 islands and cays in the Caribbean was ranked number 4 in the Caribbean and Atlantic’’ and offers ‘’ beyond a welcoming mix of award winning accommodations, from private islands to intimate inns and villas, breathtaking natural wonders, world class dining, and a host of unforgettable experiences from snorkeling, diving, and sailing, to rejuvenating spas.’’ And access into this Virgin Shangri La must be controlled by BV Islanders themselves, not some grey suited travel oligarch, or narrowly focused airline executive sitting in Dallas or Geneva!

To be continued

Dickson Igwe is on Twitter and Facebook