Aviation industry showing upward mobility in spite of pandemic

The country’s aviation industry has been making significant strides in providing efficient services to consumers to improve their flying experience, despite the restrictions imposed due to COVID-19 pandemic.

This is according to Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) Chief Air Traffic Controller-Timehri Officer, Trevor Daly. He told DPI that the expansion of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport’s runway has indeed made a positive impact on flight operations as expected to attract more international airlines and travellers.

The airport’s runway extension is part of a much larger expansion project being undertaken, which will see the enlargement of the boarding corridor. It will be able to accommodate two more passenger boarding bridges, which would then allow the airport to have six boarding bridges capable of servicing aircraft such as the Boeing 777, and Dreamliner.

The terminal building is also being extended to provide accommodation for food courts and duty-free shops, among other amenities. It will feature a modern airport façade, covering the full length of the departure terminal.

“I must tell you that coming out of engagements with the international operators whether it be JetBlue, American Airlines, COPA or whatever the case may be, it has been a welcoming development for them, not only are they able to increase the payloads, they can now depart with it. But it brings back the comfort of knowing that there is an extra portion of the runway as a defence mechanism,” Daly said.

He pointed out that the implementation of the $200 million Instrument Landing System (ILS) which aids in the landing of aircraft during poor visibility and the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) has also been able to boost the services being offered there.

“At Timehri, the airport is known for fog during the morning hours, particularly during nights and what the instrument landing system now does for us is to guide the aircraft safely down to an altitude of about 200 feet above the runway making it a safe flight for our customers.”

The latter system (ADS-B), which was installed in 2014, enables air traffic controllers to gain visual of aircraft positions which would allow them to aid faster response to any emergency, should any occur.

Additional functionality to the ADS-B will also allow pilots to perform at a better capacity, according to Daly.

“Pilots will benefit from enhanced situational awareness because they’re now able to have a dynamic picture on the screen of all the other aircraft around them. That’s an additional defence mechanism in the system struggle, so we have implemented our service in the lower air space, this year. We are looking to expand the network into the hinterland areas so that we can also get search and rescue benefits as well,” he added. 

With all of these successes, the agency has also experienced some hardships due to the pandemic in terms of its financial and economic growth which Daly explained has been dealt with to accommodate its employees.