SXM Airport aims at opening in 4 weeks despite $ 100 M damages.
Princess Juliana International Airport suffered damages of up to US 100 Million as a result of the destruction caused primarily by hurricane Irma and Maria. According to initial estimates revealed by acting CEO and COO of the airport, Michel Hyman. Their main concern was the safety of the employees, all of whom have been accounted for after the storms. We however mourn the death of Renaldo Benjamin, aka Bambi who worked as an independent contractor at the airport. Our heartfelt condolences to his family and all the loved ones he left behind. Several of our staff also suffered material damages and we very much appreciate the fact that in spite of the personal difficulties they are going through, they have continued to work diligently to ensure that we resume commercial operations within the shortest possible time Hyman stated. Hyman added that SXM airport should be able to start receiving commercial flights within short, but as always, safety and security is our main priority. The safety and security of passengers and of all the airlines servicing the destination is vital. Hurricane Irma was a mega storm that inflicted severe damage to the whole island and to our hub partners, Anguilla Tortola and St. Barth, however together we will bounce back and regain our enviable position as the leader in Caribbean aviation and the award winning world famous airport we were before the storms.
Hyman confirmed that, KLM has already announced that it will start flying twice weekly to St. Maarten from Amsterdam starting October 29th with a stopover in Curacao. Similarly WINAIR has indicated that if granted the necessary green light by the relevant authorities it would introduce limited scheduled service to Sab, St. Eustatius, St. Barth, Antigua and St. Kitts as of October 1.all of these are very encouraging developments that points to the fact that everyone is eager to return to normal service to the benefit of the traveling public. According to Hyman, both the airside and the land side of the airport suffered damages, however the runway has been cleared to allow for humanitarian and emergency flights, including the evacuation of thousands of people, many of whom were tourists, during the aftermath of hurricane Irma. As a result of winds of up to 230 MPH recorded at the airport during the passing of hurricane Irma, all four jet bridges were severely damaged. There were extensive roof damage as well causing significant water damage to the interior of the airport. As a result there was substantial damage to equipment. According to Hyman, Thankfully, no structural damage has thus far been identified.
He disclosed that the entire perimeter fencing has been destroyed. The restoration of the fence is critical because no commercial aircraft would land without the fencing up. There were minimal damage to the fuel farm but the air traffic control suffered severe water damage, while the fire station was totally destroyed.
SXM airport he noted has full insurance coverage including business interruption. All our structures and assets are fully insured. Based on our policy, our employees have nothing to fear about their jobs or their wages, adding that the Airport has retained the renowned Willis Towers Watson as its claims advocate. Neither do our creditors have anything to worry about since the airport has enough liquidity to service their debts for the next 18 months. According to him the Airport is in the hands of the Dutch military at the moment to guarantee safety and security.
We will move temporarily to the current FBO building from where we will process arriving passengers and use our baggage sortation area for processing departing passengers once commercial flights resume. We expect about 5 flights daily when this happens. However, the airport already receives daily cargo deliveries via Amerijet and the Dutch, French and US military, bringing in much needed relief materials, Hyman said. I want to thank all the airlines and other stakeholders that use our airport, for their commitment and continued support during these difficult times. I am convinced that together we will be back stronger and better, ready to offer passengers the experience that will move them to keep coming back Hyman concluded.
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