St Helena - Airport Latest

St Helena's first attempt to get its airport sort of fell flat on its face when all three contractors who had put in bids withdrew. However, progress is now being made again and Basil George, our friend and guide on the island, has sent this update:

If things move slowly in government in the UK, they move even more slowly on St Helena. One thing seems to be certain in all the uncertainties about having an air service for the Island, and that is it is likely to take place. One of the uncertainties is cost. With the hilly terrain and steep cliffs it is not going to be cheap. Before the airport can even start, a harbour has to be built in the valley next to Jamestown, the capital, and a haulage road made to the airport site along the hills to the airport site 1600 feet above sea level. The site of the airport is on a barren plateau on the eastern part of the Island. It is estimated that the harbour and haulage road will take at least a year to complete and it will be costly. No official figure has been put on the total overall cost of building the airport but one figure that has been banded about in public is that it will cost at least £100m.

The main reason why no figure has been revealed is that the British and St Helena Governments are still in the process of appointing a contractor. The contractor will not only design and build the airport but also run the air service. For the latter, as far as people on the Island know, there will only be one hub which is likely to be Johannesburg or Cape Town.

All in all, it looks as if the original date of 2010 for the opening is unlikely to be met which, from the point of view of those of us who love the island as it is, can only be good news!

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