Cheddi Jagan International Airport

Cheddi Jagan International Airport
AMSL		95 ft / 29 m
Coordinates	06°29′54″N 58°15′14″W / 6.49833°N 58.25389°W / 6.49833; -58.25389
Website	www.cjairport-gy.com
Map
SYCJ Location in Guyana
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 06/24 11,023 3,359 Asphalt 11/29 5,003 1,525 Asphalt
Statistics (2019)
Passengers 657,433[1] Passenger change 4%
Source: DAFIF[2][3]

Cheddi Jagan International Airport (IATA: GEO, ICAO: SYCJ), formerly Timehri International Airport, is the primary international airport of Guyana. The airport is located on the right bank of the Demerara River in the city of Timehri, 41 kilometres (25 mi) south of Guyana's capital, Georgetown. It is the larger of the two international airports serving Georgetown with the other airport being the Eugene F. Correia International Airport.

History

The United States obtained rights to locate military facilities in British Guiana as part of the

Atkinson Field was built 28 miles (45 km) from Georgetown on 68 acres (28 ha) of land formerly known as Hyde Park, on the Demerara River. The forest was cleared and hills were levelled and a long concrete runway was constructed. On 20 June 1941, the airfield officially opened with the activation of a weather station. The station was named after Lieutenant Colonel Bert M. Atkinson, a United States Army Air Service World War I aviator. Colonel Atkinson was the commander of the 1st Pursuit Wing on the western front in 1918. Colonel Atkinson retired from the Army in 1922 after a distinguished career and died on 27 April 1937.^{[citation needed]}

The mission of the station was the defense of the colony against German U-boats. The airfield was also a major staging point for American aircraft crossing the Atlantic Ocean heading to the European Theatre on the South Atlantic transport route. Aircraft supplied to the British forces by the United States were flown to Atkinson where they were turned over and ferried to North Africa. With the discovery of bauxite deposits in northeast Brazil in 1943, the mission of the airfield was expanded to protect the coastline of northeast South America and prevent any submarine landings by Axis forces on the continent.^{[citation needed]}

The lease of the facility by the United States was formally terminated[8] on 26 May 1966 (Guyana's Independence Day). Because the lease was terminated 74 years before its end date, a new agreement was reached giving certain specified rights to the United States in relation to the air base for the next 17 years.^{[citation needed]}

In 1965 and 1968 additions were made to the airport facilities. Also in 1968,

In March 1997, following the death of President Dr. Cheddi Jagan, then-President Samuel Hinds decided to rename the airport the Cheddi Jagan International Airport.^[19] The proposition to rename the airport was proposed in the Parliament (National Assembly) by the Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Vibert De Souza, who noted that it would be a fitting tribute to a man who had spent his life committed to the betterment of Amerindian people and fighting for the freedom and unity of all Guyanese. A plaque bearing the new name was unveiled on 21 May 1997 by the Prime Minister, Janet Jagan.^{[citation needed]}

The Cheddi Jagan International Airport underwent a 150 million dollar modernization and expansion. The runway was extended to about 10,500 feet and the expansion provided a new arrivals terminal building with eight boarding bridges, elevators and CCTV. This was completed in December 2018. However, the check-in facility opened at the same time.^[20] In March 2023, British Airways commenced service to London's Gatwick Airport via Saint Lucia aboard a Boeing 777.^[21]

United Airlines will start four weekly Houston-IAH service in April 2024.

Facilities

The airport sits at an elevation of 95 feet (29 m) above

• On 30 July 2011, Caribbean Airlines Flight 523 overran a runway in rainy weather while landing at Cheddi Jagan International Airport and went through a chain-link perimeter fence. The aircraft, a Boeing 737-800, broke in two just behind the first class cabin. There were no fatalities, although at least two passengers suffered broken legs and many others suffered lacerations and other injuries. Caribbean Airlines confirmed that 157 passengers and 6 crew members were on board the aircraft at the time.^{[citation needed]}

• On 9 November 2018, Fly Jamaica Airways Flight 256, bound for Toronto, overshot the runway when making an emergency landing for technical issues in the Boeing 757's hydraulics.^[26] This caused significant damage to the aircraft and one passenger fatality. The airliner involved, B757-200 registration N524AT was deemed beyond economical repair and written-off.^[27]

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency