Continuously aiming at improvement, PJIAE on Friday May 29th 2009
hosted the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Airport Boulevard.
"The road and car park works represent yet another step in the
development of St. Maarten's Airport. This project will reduce
traffic congestion, thus reducing the loss of valuable productive
time and reducing the chances of people missing flights," PJIAE
President drs. Eugene Holiday said at the groundbreaking ceremony.
CONCERNS
Mr. Holiday also voiced concerns about the continued construction
around the airport. He said that the efforts PJIAE continues to make
to optimize the effective use of the airport will only be successful
if the limited availability of land is overcome. The PJIAE President
said that the continued construction around the airport is a concern
from an airport and island wide developmental perspective. "It is a
national imperative to address this concern," he said
The new south fence is finished. Facility Maintenance workers made
good on their promise for a sturdy barrier, after the old fence was
torn down during the passing of Hurricane Omar on October 16 2008.
After running Air France affairs in the Caribbean for some six
years, Manager Philippe Lacoste knows one thing for sure: he is not
returning to France to live. "I will visit, because I love France,
love to attend the Opera and Theater in Paris, but only for a few
days. After that, I prefer to come back," he said.
Dozens of St. Maarten rescue workers took part in a simulation of a
nightmare scenario at Princess Juliana International Airport on
Tuesday May 26, 2009. The objective: taking part in a drill, to test
readiness in case of disaster. The simulation: a flock of birds
struck a commercial flight carrying 96 passengers and sent it
crashing at the airport, killing three persons and injuring more
than 30 others. "This could have actually happened," said Princess
Juliana International Airport Enterprises (PJIAE) President Eugene
Holiday at a press conference at the end of the massive disaster
simulation. "It is safe to say that the overall exercise was a
success in terms of the overall objective to test the preparedness
of the airport," Holiday said.
PJIAE is not taking the H1N1 virus lightly. Since the deadly swine
flu was first confirmed in Mexico and subsequently in the US in late
April 2009 and worldwide measures were put into place to curb its
spread, St. Maarten has followed suit. At the airport a 'campaign'
was put in place to help curb the spread of the virus into the
island.
PJIAE HELPS NATURE FOUNDATION WITH SEA TURTLE SIGNAGE
St. Maarten Nature Foundation has erected sea turtle awareness signs
on several beaches around the island with the help of PJIAE. Two
were erected on sea turtle nesting beaches Guana Bay beach and Gibbs
Bay and three on Simpson Bay Beach alongside the airport runway,
where turtles often come ashore to lay their eggs as well.
Insel Air now flies to Puerto Rico as well. The airline flies to the
US territory twice weekly (Friday and Monday). The flight was
inaugurated on April 3rd 2009 and as Insel Air had previously
created the necessary media buzz around this new service, the first
flight was sold out. Initiated in a time when other carriers in the
region are slashing their flight plans and cost, the new flight was
considered a welcome addition; Netherlands Antilles Minister of
Traffic Mr. Maurice Adriaens and and St. Maarten's Aviation
Commissioner Sarah Wescot-Williams commended the airline for the
initiative. Insel Air's Chief of International Affairs Edward
Heerenveen said Insel Air continues to be a proud partner of the
islands it serves. The airline now serves four destinations out of
St. Maarten - Dominican Republic, Haiti, Miami and now Puerto Rico.
