A century after the first scheduled commercial flight in St. Petersburg, Florida back in 1914, Commercial Aviation remains a main area of focus, especially in the tourism dependent states of the Caribbean.
Day two of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) State of the Industry Conference (STOIC) was Caribbean Aviation Day, and the discussions, led by Mr. Peter Cerda, Regional Vice President of International Air Transport Association (IATA), touched on many hot issues, including safety of aircraft, cost of operations, cost of fuel and the impact of Government imposed taxes. Mr. Cerda said that despite the success of commercial airlift to the Caribbean, there is demand for increased capacity but that the factors listed above made it expensive for airline operation and that Governments need to commit to improving infrastructure, removing the barriers to inter-regional connectivity and to reviewing excessive taxation levies to ensure the sustainability of airline operations in the future.
The Premier made several interventions during this meeting, especially on the subject of “Aviation being the engine of economic growth and social development across the Caribbean.” Premier Ewing gave his view on the challenges of regional Governments in relation to air transport taxes to support airport developments, and that even though Governments support and believe that reduction in air transport taxes will increase passenger arrivals and hence job creation and revenue, such taxes are ring fenced for repayment of loans for airport developments. These real issues, the Premier said, present challenges to Governments who in principle supports air transport tax reduction to remain competitive.
Mr. Cerda also spoke to the topic of One Stop Security (OSS), which proposes that the regional states operate as one Caribbean Territory and would allow passengers to be screened to a global standard at the originating airport and connect without being re-screened, to which the Premier made further intervention. Premier Ewing, in addressing the matter said that there are indeed benefits to OSS, as the removal of restrictions for intra-regional travel would facilitate passenger transit throughout the region and enhance the travel experience in the region while also reducing the cost of inter-regional travel so that the Caribbean can complete globally, but said that there are also very real concerns that must not be taken for granted. The Premier raised the matter of the cost of technological infrastructure and training for the maintenance of border control and security. These advancements, the Premier said, while enhancing security controls and creating better passenger travel experiences are cost-prohibitive, especially for the Governments facing the economic challenges of small island developing states.
The second Caribbean Aviation Day (first being held in Barbados in 2007) ended with stakeholders’ commitment to improving collaboration between airports, airlines and Governments, and to exploring ways that the industry can assist Governments in reducing dependency on air transport taxes, which would ultimately increase the competitiveness of the region and increase revenues for airports and Governments, alike.
