The Tribune

By SANCHESKA BROWN

Tribune Staff Reporter

sbrown@tribunemedia.net

PERMANENT solar lights have been purchased for the Mayaguana Airport, Minister of Transport and Aviation Glenys Hanna-Martin announced yesterday.

Mrs Hanna-Martin said the Department of Civil Aviation ordered the lights, which have now been delivered but are yet to be installed.

“It is to be noted that construction work on the Mayaguana runway has been substantially stalled for a period of years thereby negatively impacting airlift to that southern island,” she said.

“Just over one week ago temporary emergency solar lights were delivered to the island of Mayaguana to facilitate emergency night flights. Permanent solar lights have been purchased by the Department of Civil Aviation to be transported and installed on completion of the runway.”

The announcement comes less than two months after an aircraft – forced to make a risky midnight landing on the unlit, severely damaged runway on Mayaguana, crashed into a truck, setting it on fire and killing the three people inside.

The vehicle was one of several that had lined the runway that night to illuminate it for the aircraft, as there were no lights installed at the time.

The public learned that because of the problem, Bahamasair had actually stopped flying to the island some time before.

Instead, the government had organised charter flights with LeAir Charter Service, which owns the Cessna C402 that crashed.

In the aftermath of the disaster, Mrs Hanna-Martin vowed to order emergency lights immediately.

The PLP government also laid the blame for the crash at the feet of the former FNM administration, which renegotiated a contract which allegedly would have seen the runway repaired and lights installed.

But the FNM responded, attacking the government for trying to “duck and cover and blame someone” else for failures on its watch.

Yesterday, she added that senior government officials recently met with the project manager of the I Group, the large joint-venture development under construction on the island, which has been contracted to rebuild the runway.

“My ministry also met with the contractor who has been slated by the I Group to construct the runway. They have advised and it has been agreed that the runway works, weather permitting, will begin in earnest on June 11 to be completed within 12 weeks thereafter,” she said.

Mrs Hanna-Martin said the Ministry of Works and Urban Development along with the Ministry of Transport and the Department of Civil Avaiation will closely monitor the work until it is completed.

She said it is anticipated that on completion, Bahamasair will recommence regular scheduled flights to Mayaguana.