PHILIPSBURG--Why it is cheaper to fly from Amsterdam to Cura�ao ? the longest flight within the kingdom ? than to St. Maarten, one of the shortest flights, was one of the questions raised primarily by St. Maarten Members of Parliament (MPs) at the start of the four-day Inter-Parliamentary Affairs and Kingdom Relations Conference on Tuesday.
MPs from theNetherlands, Aruba, Cura�ao andSt.Maarten gathered in Sonesta Great Bay Beach Resort and Casino to iron out issues facing their constituents and by extension the people living in the kingdom.
MPs from the Netherlands hammered home that travel from the Dutch public entities Saba and St. Eustatius is much higher than in the days of the Netherlands Antilles. St. Maarten MPs pointed out that the high price of air tickets from Amsterdam should be lowered for students and senior citizens travelling to the Dutch Caribbean.
MP Patrick Illidge was keen on the matter of discounted tickets for students and seniors, giving as an example the special rates offered by Air France to French Caribbean students studying in France. Based on the partnership of Air France and Royal Dutch Airline KLM, a similar discount should be offered to St. Maarten students and by extension those of Saba and St. Eustatius.
MP Romain Laville also questioned the disparity in ticket prices fromAmsterdamto St. Maarten and Cura�ao.
Dutch MP F. van Kappen alluded to St. Maarten MPs needing to do their homework to figure out why ticket prices were high. MP Roy Marlin said there could be no talk about travel within the kingdom and the emphasis was only on the options in the Caribbean part and not the Europe link.
Van Kappen said KLM was a commercial entity to which Marlin replied that Winair was too.
Cura�ao MP Eunice Eisden agreed that the travel access throughout the kingdom had to be addressed.
Dutch delegation leader MP Brigitte van der Burg indicated that the issue of the tickets had merits and could be looked into.
The conference was declared open by President of Parliament Gracita Arrindell after the four delegation leaders expressed wishes for positive discussions that would give birth to concrete actions.
Following the opening, the majority of MPs went on a tour of Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA). The visiting MPs were very impressed with the operation, general state of cleanliness and upkeep of the terminal building.
Their next stop was at the Windward Islands Airways International Winair office for a tour of the hangar and one of the airline?s three aircraft.
The air transportation theme continued when the formal sessions resumed in Sonesta Great Bay with PJIA Director of Operations Larry Doncher giving a presentation on the airport?s growth and some plans for the future.
A similar presentation about Winair was given by ad hoc Committee chairman Michael Ferrier. He disclosed that the airline would service Anguilla and a new aircraft would be acquired by month end.
Airport taxes
Dutch MPs, in particular Ineke van Gent, questioned the significant increase in price for air tickets for travel via St. Maarten to Saba and St. Eustatius since the dismantling of theNetherlands Antillesin October 2010. They pointed to the change in the airport departure tax.
MP Roy Marlin explained that the increase stemmed from the two islands? present classification as international destinations. Van Gent argued that the islands were ?still in the kingdom.?
The law regulating the airport departure fees would have to be amended to decrease the prices. Roy Marlin said this would have to be a discussion for the MPs and if this were made an action point from the conference it could be followed up.
Doncher advocated for all countries in the kingdom to offer one set departure fee as an incentive to persuade people within the kingdom to start travelling again, a needed boost for all the tourism economies.
Ferrier added that ticket prices like those of Winair also were affected by the rising cost of fuel.
Airport
Doncher spoke about the airport working to become the premier gateway for the region and about the study commissioned to look into developing its hub function. Plans for two additional Immigration booths to reduce clearance time for passengers and the introduction of interisland pre-clearance also were mentioned.
Dutch MP Andr� Bosman asked about the airport sharing its expertise with the airports of Saba and St. Eustatius. Doncher said a relationship had existed pre-October 10, 2010, but contact had decreased since. The airport, he said, is always willing to assist.
Aruba President of Parliament Paul Croes enquired why there was no direct flight between St. Maarten andAruba. Doncher said if such a flight came on line the airport world welcome it.
Winair
Dealing directly with the airline?s operations, Ferrier said Winair had been given the responsibility of servicing Saba and St. Eustatius over the year without the necessary support from governments to carry out this task.
Frank Gibbs of Winair added that the airline had been given the responsibility to provide regular and adequate service to the two islands without subsidy.
Dutch MP Eric Lucassen questioned choices made by Winair in the past to fly to what had become unprofitable destinations and whether this was a cause of the airline?s financial state.
Ferrier said that financial state had resulted from lack of attention by the former Antilles government that had left management to make decisions at times that were ?questionable? in hindsight. One such decision was the sale of the Winair planes that were then leased back from the new owners. The funds from the sale was used to ?plug leaks? in the airline?s operations.
Bosman said he was ?impressed by the operations? of the airline.
Tuesday?s session ended with a presentation about Aruba becoming a living lab for sustainable energy with the opening of a Netherlands Institute for Applied Scientific Research TNO branch on the island.
The inter-parliamentary consultations continue today, Wednesday.
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