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Tropic Air Boss Says Basil Jones Airport Project Will “Never Happen”
posted (June 15, 2018)
And the busiest route for Tropic and Maya Island is from PGIA to San Pedro. But, if the Basil Jones Airport project on northern Ambergris Caye does go through - would it cut off the main source of revenue for Belize's local airlines? We got input from both sides:...

Jules Vasquez- Reporter
"If a Basil Jones International Airport is built, then all of this goes to nothing because COPA could fly directly into the International Airport there. I am saying that, how do you all manage these competing interests, when clearly an international airport at Basil Jones would work against Tropic and Maya?"

Hon. Manuel Heredia Junior- Minister of Tourism
"Definitely not Jules, under the present agreement with PGIA, any existing airline that is flying cannot divert to any other airport in Belize. This airport that we are doing is to one, have European charters coming in to Belize, to have private aircraft and then later on we will see if there are possibilities of new destinations. Lufthansa, as soon as they heard about the possibilities of building an airport, have approached this company already you know. They want to know a little more and have this interest of flying in. So, that opens the door to other carriers. What we want is that if we are doing almost 400 thousand, within the next five years we want to double that amount."

Jules Vasquez
"What happens if indeed as is planned, they open an international airport up north in the Basil Jones area? Copa can just say, well we will just fly directly to San Pedro, who needs Tropic Air?"

John Greif III
"Jules I just don't see that happening. To me and I hope no one gets offended, it seems like a pipeline drain that just…who is going to raise $100 million US for a service that really isn't needed anyway? I mean, it is so easy because of the incredible competition you have between Maya and Tropic to get to anywhere in Belize now. Why would Copa do that? So, I don't see it happening, ever."

Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with International Airport Alliance, but Heredia says they have to get clearance from the DOE and submit their plans to government for approval before there is any, quote, "definitive agreement."

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