Airport closes for hours after cargo plane mishap at the weekend

The Terrance B Lettsome International Airport suffered its second closure in as many days after the runway became encumbered by an aircraft for a few hours at the weekend.

Travellers coming into the territory through the airport at the time were notified that the Authority suffered a service interruption.

The BVI Airports Authority (BVIAA) issued a press release on Saturday, June 3 around 10:30 am which explained that the closure was forced when a cargo airline blew a tire upon landing at the airport.

According to the BVIAA, the aircraft was disabled on runway 25 and required the Authority’s operations team along with an aircraft operator to arrange for the delivery of spare parts to allow the aircraft to be repaired and removed from the runway.

The closure resulted in delays across various airline networks. Therefore, persons travelling were advised to contact their respective airlines for information regarding travel arrangements.

The airport resumed normal operations some three hours later, once the issue had been rectified.

The authority encountered a staffing issue with its Air Traffic Control Tower at the end of the previous week that forced the airport to close until the following day.

Last Thursday, the territory welcomed inaugural flights from American Airlines, which offer non-stop flights between the BVI and Miami in the USA.