Airport officially moves into Terminal Building | THE DAILY HERALD

AIRPORT–As part of Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) Package One – Temporary Operations, management hosted a brief ceremony re-opening the recently restored terminal building on Tuesday morning. Dignitaries from both sides of the island attended the event inside the building.

  Operations were moved on December 13, two days ahead the December 15 deadline given to the contractor.

  Minister of Tourism Stuart Johnson, PJIA Supervisory Board Chairman Alex Dijkhoffz and the PJIA management team ended the event with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The reconstruction project includes the immigration and emigration booths, offices, the reinstatement of the existing air-conditioning and sprinkler systems, fire alarm and public-address systems, closed-circuit TV (CCTV) surveillance and security equipment, as well as information technology (IT) systems and seating.

  Chief Operations Officer (COO) Michel Hyman said in his address, “Ladies and gentlemen, we are doing our utmost best to ensure that SXM Airport is not only rebuilt better and smarter, but also much stronger. To that end, the roof repair project, phase two of which we expect to be completed in the first quarter of next year, has been very important in enabling us to transfer our operations back to the terminal building. The new roof is the strongest of its type in the Caribbean, as it has been designed to withstand a hurricane wind speed of 185 miles per hour.

  “The temporary, and I am sure you will agree that they were temporary, arrival and departure pavilions are being dismantled, freeing up more space for our operations, and removing one of the most painful reminders of the disaster that befell us some 15 months ago.

  “As we begin the celebration of the 75 years of the existence of Princess Juliana International Airport. We are therefore poised to scale higher heights, combining our collective experience as one of the oldest commercial airports in the region with our futuristic vision of an airport of the 21st century. I can assure you that in that mission, we shall never compromise safety, security or excellence.”

  Chief Finance Officer (CFO) Ravi Daryanani said, “Permit me also to single out someone who is well-known to all of you and whose work ethics, total dedication and commitment, someone whose spirit epitomises our collective will at PJIAE to give our all, for the airport to return to its glory days. That someone is my colleague in the management team, Mr. Michel Hyman. Mr. Hyman, I salute you.

  “This event comes at a time when the airport is also marking its 75th anniversary as a commercial airport, a milestone we will continue to celebrate throughout the coming year.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, the double whammy of Irma and Maria not only destroyed our award-winning airport – named the best in the Caribbean just the year before the storms – but also put a grinding stop to several capital improvement projects that were underway or in an advanced stage of planning. The reconstruction of the airport could not, therefore, take place without proper planning and foresight.”

  Minister Johnson focused on the airport’s anniversary and rebuilding process. “As we celebrate today, I assure you that there are others who are looking at ways to build bigger, to dethrone us as the preferred vacation destination in the Caribbean. This is just one of many reasons why moving our daily operations back into the main terminal building was a top priority.

  “That being said, I want to thank the CFO and COO and their team along with the contractors and construction crew for their contribution towards making this move possible.

  “Today we have already seen the return of some of our major carriers and the plans are in place to welcome the return of many more until ultimately we are back to the arrival numbers we enjoyed pre-Irma. This shows a commitment to our destination and trust in SXM Airport that is of high value, and I want to thank those partners in the industry for continuing to display true confidence in our destination.

  “Be assured that together we will achieve real progress when we see the completion of each phase of our reconstruction, and we will celebrate each milestone. When the US [United States – Ed.] pre-clearance and FBO [fixed-base operations] terminal along with the fuel plant are all completed, we will rejoice because it will be achieved through our dedication to our Country St. Maarten and the hard work of our people.

  “These ultimate goals for our airport are not for individual gain, but they are some vital ingredients identified by the St. Maarten United Christian Democratic Coalition as priorities for the development of a sustainable St. Maarten with a vibrant and robust economy.”

  The entire airport sustained severe damage from Hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017. Commercial operations were restored on October 10, 2017, a little over a month after the storms forced the closure of the facilities.

Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/83782-airport-officially-moves-into-terminal-building

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