A behind the scenes tour of the facilities of Princess Juliana International Airport on Tuesday July 8, 2008 left French St. Martin Government officials impressed, proud and eager for stronger cooperation with the Dutch side. Following the welcome by Leader of government Sarah Wescott-Williams, the 30+ French officials, led by President Louis Constant Fleming were treated to a presentation on the airport's history and operations by PJIAE President drs. Eugene Holiday.

They were then bussed to and given a tour of the state of the art ATC tower followed by a tour of the modern baggage handling, sortation and screening system in the basement of the Terminal building where they marvelled at the quality of the facilities and at the professionalism displayed by the employees they encountered at the airport. The notion at the end of the tour was that St. Maarten's southern and northern sides should work closer by using the available expertise on the island to resolve a lot of issues together.

 

“We are leaving with a lot of knowledge and foresight that we didn’t have before we came here. This is the beginning of real cooperation between the both sides under the principles of the treaty of Concordia,” Mr. Fleming said. He said that one of his objectives after being elected President of the Collectivite was to make sure St. Maarten/St. Martin do away with the attitude that there is only one side to the island. “... the attitude that there is a separation. It is important that we acknowledge that there is tremendous amount of expertise on the Dutch side; just look at this facility put together by local St. Maarteners. It is important that we have these meetings,” he said.

He hinted at wanting more cooperation on lagoon and other marine issues, on resolving the question of garbage on the island and on aviation matters. “We have a “small” airport in Grand Case and we’re looking at how we can make it bigger,” he said.

Mr. Fleming wasn’t the only one of the French officials who showed interest in more cooperation with PJIAE. Executive Council Member Mr. Alain Richardson, after drs. Holiday’s presentation and in interviews after the tour, said that L’Esperanse Airport in Grand Case would fare well if it would initiate a partnership with PJIAE. His interest was in the private jet business PJIAE sometimes cannot handle because of over bookings. “There is tremendous potential here. If we would upgrade Grand Case airport it could handle private jets; we need to go beyond the speeches and realize that this is one island. These two airports should complement each other, instead of seeing each other as competitors,” he said, warning that the real competitors are the other airports in the region where private aircraft divert to when they cannot be accommodated here.

Mr. Richardson also expressed pride at seeing local people at the helm of PJIAE and running its “masterpiece of infrastructure. “I want to commend the management and the employees for the tremendous work they are doing here,” he said.

The tour of the airport facilities was part of a series of visits coordinated through Government, as French St. Martin settles into its new status, the rein of several of its affairs in own hands.

Leader of Government, Mrs. Sarah Wescott-Williams, who is also Commissioner of Aviation, expressed hopes that the French officials were more enlightened about the aviation developments on the Dutch side. She too said that both sides of the island need to work together more. “This is just the beginning; I look towards much more synergy. The world around us is facing so many problems and St. Maarten is not left out; so it calls for us to work together and see what we can do together for the betterment of our island. The island has a lot of expertise we can share, if we only look for it,” she said.

PJIAE President Drs. Holiday said he was happy that the French officials showed so much interest in the inner workings of the airport. “PJIAE is not just the airport of the Dutch side, but of the French side as well. We are a dual nation island, but we are one people, and should work on concrete steps to give this content; visits like these only enhance that,” he said. “PJIAE currently provides air traffic services for flights going into Grand Case airport and there is potential for a further deepening of the relations”, he said. A proponent of the concept of complementing instead of competing with Grand Case airport, he said he looked forward to greater cooperation on aviation matters with the French side.

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