Aviation Specials – May 2018

CARIBBEAN

Jose and Maria compounded the tragedy by

filling the passenger building’s interior with

rainwater. By the end of last year, the facility

had been declared a health hazard and,

even now, it has not reopened. The damage

to the airfield infrastructure has been

estimated at $76m and, although the death

toll was limited mercifully, the economic loss

to the island could reach $3bn.

Regular flights to SXM resumed on

October 10, but inbound international

passengers are being processed in a

large temporary air-conditioned pavilion,

but visitor numbers plummeted. By the

end of March, only 20% of the island’s

hotels were operating normally. Most

airlines have returned, but few visit

frequently now. KLM’s blue and white

A330s arrive from Amsterdam only twice

a week (down from three-weekly), while

the once-daily Air France flights from

Paris are still suspended. Services from

the USA and Canada have also been

scaled back dramatically and as a result

the inter-island traffic has decreased,

leaving throughput at SXM a fraction of

what it was before Irma hit.

It is going to take many years for the

airport – and the island – to recover and

for the good days to return. But the locals

are determined they will get better. Many

aviation enthusiasts are already keenly

anticipating going back to sip a cool

Presidente in the Sunset Beach Bar as the

aircraft glide down the 10 approach.

AIRLINES

Air Canada Rouge

Air Caraïbes

Air Sunshine

Air Transat

Anguilla Air Services

American Airlines

Caribbean Airlines

Copa Airlines

Delta Air Lines

Insel Air

InterCaribbean Airways

JetBlue Airways

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines

LIAT

Seaborne Airlines

Spirit Airlines

St Barth Commuter

Trans Anguilla Airways

United Airlines

WestJet

Winair

XL Airways France

TOP LEFT: Runway

10/28 has sea at

both ends.

Departures to the

west have to turn

right shortly after

taking off to avoid

high ground. (Rena-

to Serra Fonseca)

FAR LEFT:

McDonnell Douglas

MD-80s are popular

as they’re noisy and

usually blow a lot of

sand around.

BOTTOM LEFT: Sun

worshippers salute

the inbound jumbo

jet. (Dennis Jans-

sen Photography)

ABOVE LEFT: Air

Caraïbes connects

Paris Orly to

Sint Maarten.

LEFT: Beachgoers

are blasted with

sand as an aircraft

takes off. (Renato

Serra Fonseca)

Extreme Airports // 75

BELOW: The KLM

Boeing 747-406

that flew to Sint

Maarten every day

used to continue

on to Curaçao

before returning

to Amsterdam.

(Dennis Janssen

Photography)

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