Argyle International Airport construction in winding down phase – Dr Gonsalves

The construction phase of the Argyle International Airport (AIA) is winding down, and the main focus is now on the operational phase.

So said Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves during a press conference yesterday at Cabinet Room.

“I am satisfied that we are pretty much in the winding down phase of the construction, we already started the phases of putting things in place for the operations here,”{{more}} he said.

The Prime Minister disclosed that major personnel have already been hired and the Argyle International Airport Company is recruiting other persons.

Additionally, according to Gonsalves, chief executive officer of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Tourism Authority (SVGTA) Glen Beache is in communication with airlines.

“We put some money to the AIA so that they can get on with their business, meanwhile the team headed by Glen Beache is in active conversations with the airlines. We have had visits from a couple of them,” he stated.

Gonsalves said that a number of systems are also being put in place for the very complex operations to take place at the airport.

Construction on the AIA began on August 13, 2008 and has since missed several completion dates, however the Prime Minister noted that despite naysayers, an international airport was constructed under his leadership.

“It has been delayed, I explained reasons for delays already. Perhaps some of the timelines we give were overly ambitious, but how is it people tend to forget this question that before the period of Ralph and the ULP (Unity Labour Party) nobody knew how to build an international airport…we built it.”(CM)