DRS. HOLIDAY: LATIN AMERICA ST. MAARTEN'S NEW FRONTIER
PJIAE President drs. Eugene Holiday has called for continued action
aimed at increasing and diversifying our airlift by seeking to among
others establish air services from Latin America.
He referred to the annual Network Latin America conference which was
held at Westin, St. Maarten on December 6 - 8, 2009 as an excellent
forum for the purpose of spurring new business. “I welcome this
opportunity for us as airlines and airports to search for new and
mutually beneficial opportunities for our companies. This is especially
important in the current challenging economic conditions.
Drs. Holiday said that PJIAE’s strategic approach is aimed at
maintaining St. Maarten position as a premier tourist destination; a
position that can only be ensured by offering airlines, passengers, and
other users: airport, air traffic control and commercial services, that
meet and exceed the highest possible industry standards. He reported
that in 2008, PJIAE served over 1.7 million passengers, 50% of which
came from North America; handled some 71,000 aircraft which transported
these passengers through an extensive network of air services connecting
St. Maarten/St. Martin and surrounding islands to North America, South
and Central America, and Europe. Services came under pressure in 2009
however.
“The activities of PJIAE on the island translate in major economic
spin-offs by the strong correlation between the economic growth on the
island and passenger growth at PJIA. This makes PJIA the island’s single
most important strategic asset. It is therefore essential that the
airport continue to be in a position to offer the services required to
fuel our local economy. PJIAE therefore continues to work on increasing
and diversifying air service. Looking for new opportunities is critical
in this regard and therefore I consider Latin America the new frontier
for St. Maarten," drs Holiday said.
