British Airways flight hailed as step in the right direction
By Ryan Haas
Reporter-SKNVibes.com
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The 280-seat Boeing 777 British Airways flight deboards at RLB International Airport
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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts- THE inaugural British Airways flight 2157 which touched down at the Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport at 8:50 p.m. on Saturday (Jan. 10) was saluted by government officials as a defining moment in the Federation’s tourism history.
Despite a 4-hour delay at London’s Gatwick Airport due to frigid weather, the passengers, crew and BA officials appeared in good spirits as they were greeted by the top echelon of St. Kitts-Nevis’ government.
Among the passengers was Minister of State with responsibility for Tourism, Hon. Richard Skerritt, who said that the flight was one of the defining moments of his career as a public servant.
“Of the time I have had the pleasure to give public service on a full-time basis, this is definitely one of the more exciting journeys I have been on,” he said.
St. Kitts-Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas echoed the sentiments of his Senator, calling the flight “a very bold step” toward the future of tourism in the Federation.
“Today’s event marks one of the greatest moments in our country’s effort to reposition our tourism industry to a world-class industry
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Prime Minister Dr. Hon. Denzil Douglas presents BA UK General Manager Richard Tames with a token
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that would help propel St. Kitts-Nevis to the very pinnacle of economic and social development in the Caribbean region.”
He also stated that the flight would help ensure the tourism product of St. Kitts-Nevis survives the current global economic decline.
“The global financial crisis is having a major impact on all aspects of [the tourism] industry. We here in St. Kitts-Nevis, however, are not afraid and believe that we must move boldly out to bring in the desired visitors and airlines to our islands.”
British Airways General Manager for the UK Richard Tames said that he had every reason to believe the flight would be a success.
“British Airways does not start new routes lightly. We are very proud to be establishing this key link between the UK and St. Kitts-Nevis, and we are very much committed to making it work. We wouldn’t be flying here if we didn’t think it had enormous potential,” he said.
The Boeing 777 flight marks the carrier’s eleventh service to the Caribbean and will arrive in St. Kitts weekly on Saturday’s at 4:45 p.m. The aircraft has a maximum seating capacity of 280 passengers.
Following a scheduled stop in Antigua, nearly 40% of the passengers on the inaugural flight travelled on to St. Kitts and Skerritt said he hopes to raise that number to 60% within the next year.
