More than 30 flights were cancelled as a result of the closure of the runway at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, St James, on Thursday, August 10, after the runway was shutdown due to ongoing expansion works.

A total of 51 flights were scheduled to depart for the day, however, 31 of the scheduled flights got cancelled and the others diverted to nearby airports.

Nadia-Anglin Nolan, statistics and air service development analyst at the Sangster International Airport, told Our Today in an interview that some of the affected flights were diverted to the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, the Cayman Islands, Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, while some got cancelled.

The flight diversions and cancellations resulted in hundreds of travellers left stranded. Importantly, the loses from taxes and airline fees are still being calculated.

In a statement on Thursday, August 10, the airport’s management said the decision to temporarily close the runway was done to prioritise the safety of all operations.

A statement from the Ministry of Transport said inclement weather triggered a malfunction of equipment being used in upgrading works being carried out on the runway.

However, Opposition spokesman on Transport, Mikael Phillips, has since dismissed the SIA’s explanation of the reason for the airport’s closure, describing it as particularly weak’. He urged Transport Minister Daryl Vaz to order an investigation and use his authority to return the country’s aviation to normality.

Phillips, in a statement on Thursday, also urged the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority (JCAA) to launch an urgent investigation into the operations of the country’s two airports following Thursday’s incident.

“The result is chaos at both airports as flights have been diverted to NMIA. I am extremely disappointed experienced international airport operators did not manage regular maintenance work in a more efficient manner,” Phillips said.

Transport Minister Daryl Vaz has expressed discontent with the series of events that transpired and order a detail report from the JCAA, SIA management and the Airports Authority of Jamaica. He has vowed to spare no effort in ensuring that there is not a repeat.

“No effort will be spared to ensure that this mishap does not reoccur,” Vaz declared.

The airport has since reopened the runways and normal operations have been restored.