Business View Caribbean September/October 2018

32 33 ARGYLE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT fire fighting (ARFF) stations, signage, access roads, a runway, three aprons, and two taxiways. The air- port aprons can accommodate up to 40 airplanes simultaneously and are designed to accommo- date jets as large as the Boeing 747-400s. The airport is able to handle three wide-body aircraft at one time, with additional six parking places for general aviation ATR type aircraft. The airport is equipped with a modernized Instrument Landing System and navigational aids such as VOR and NDB, along with a fully lit runway, taxiways, and apron for night operations, precision approach path indicators, radio navigators, and an Automat- ed Weather Observing System (AWOS). Its state-of-the-art passenger terminal is divid- ed into two sections: the Domestic Terminal and the International Terminal, which is equipped with an automated baggage handling system, an integrated check-in system, three elevators, and two escalators for ease of passenger movement throughout the building, two baggage reclaim belts, and two state-of-the-art glass jet bridg- es for international travel and docking of large commercial aircraft. The Domestic Terminal caters to persons travelling to the Grenadine islands of Bequia, Canouan, Mustique, and Union Island. Approximately 290 employees work directly for the airport and another 300 for its various facil- ities, concessions, and service providers, making Argyle one of the country’s major employers in both the public and private sectors, reports Chief Executive Officer, Hadley Bourne. The airport is HADLEY BOURNE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Canadian Bank Note COMPANY, LIMITED Our customers oversee the complex projects that combine a government’s technology with the day-to-day life of its citizens. We partner with many Caribbean countries to design customized solutions that are backed by unparalleled expertise and a global perspective. Together, we make the world more secure. cbnco.com Where some people see a challenge, we see an opportunity. Currency Border Security Drivers & Vehicles National ID Excise Control Lottery & Gaming CBN_AirportDev_Ad_7.5x4.9_v2.indd 1 2016-12-21 2:00 PM also on track to becoming the second solar-pow- ered airport in the Caribbean, following V. C. Bird International Airport in Antigua. “We actually are in the process of developing a solar farm; just a bit over 500 KW. It should be completed by the end of July,” Bourne says. “As time progresses, we could possibly increase that capacity to 1 MW or just beyond.” According to Bourne, one of the airport’s main challenges is dealing with the vicissitudes of Mother Nature. “We are directly in the hurricane belt, and, fortunately, we didn’t suffer the same devastation as some of our neighbors, last year. A lot of those systems got stronger as they passed us, or turned slightly north, or south, or west. So, we were lucky. But even though we didn’t have hurricanes, we are in a very mountainous area