The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

A CABINET minister yesterday said The Bahamas should start receiving fees for the use of 75 percent of its air space by this July, as it awaits a deal with Cuba to cover the remainder.

Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister for tourism and aviation, speaking to reporters outside of cabinet office yesterday, said the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will gather the necessary data on which to base the fees – number of aircraft that transit this nation’s air space, together with their weight and distance travelled – for May and supply it to The Bahamas by June.

He explained that The Bahamas will then send this to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which will then collect these fees on The Bahamas’ behalf from airlines and private aviation providers.

“Certainly by the middle of July we should begin to receive some overflight fees and usage fees associated with the using of our air space,” Mr D’Aguilar said. However, fees will only be generated from the 75 percent of Bahamian air space managed by the FAA.

The remaining 25 percent is managed by Cuba, and The Bahamas has yet to strike a similar agreement with its western neighbour to allow this nation to begin collecting fees for that portion of its air space.

“The FAA will collect that data for us and we have to finalise one other agreement with the Cubans because, remember, they manage or provide air traffic control services in 25 percent of our sovereign airspace,” the minister added.

Mr D’Aguilar also confirmed that the government is still putting in place the necessary infrastructure to collect, bill and administer its new overflight fees regime, which includes sourcing the necessary equipment and technology to ensure it is managed effectively.

While not providing a figure on the cost involved, Mr D’Aguilar said provisions have been made in the upcoming 2021-2022 budget to accommodate the procurement of an IT system for overflight fees.

“The costs will pale in comparison to the revenue. This is completely new to us, so it is hard to budget, but we have some projections,” said Mr D’Aguilar. “Now that we’ve got a deal concretised we will start to enhance the technology to facilitate the collection of those fees, certainly domestically.”

Mr D’Aguilar reasserted that The Bahamas’ annual overflight fee collections will rise to $40m “as tourism rebounds” and more flights transit Bahamian airspace, with the regime having the potential to generate more than $300m over its first decade.