Residents, tourists treated poorly at main airport — Skelton Cline

Honestly Speaking talk show host Claude Skelton Cline said residents and visitors are being subjected to unnecessary treatment at the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport.

He said he witnessed tourists being told they could only carry one resealable plastic bag containing toiletries, with one woman reportedly forced to leave the security line because “the Ziploc bag she had was too big,” even though all the liquids inside were three ounces or less.

“My God. They got a line spinning around the place because only one machine is working,” he said, questioning how long the second screening machine has been out of service.

Skelton Cline also claimed he watched another female passenger undergo repeated pat-downs before additional screening found nothing suspicious. He said his own carry-on bag was emptied after security officers detected an unidentified item that ultimately turned out to be deodorant.

While stressing that his criticism was not directed at frontline staff, he said, “This ain’t for you. You’re just doing your job.” Instead, he blamed airport leadership, arguing, “Those of you who are in charge… we’ve got to stop putting locals and guests through this stuff.”

He added that his experience at airports abroad was markedly different. “I go through airports all the time,” he said, noting that passengers move quickly through security while maintaining the same safety standards.

National airline needed

In the meantime, Skelton Cline argued that the BVI should revisit the idea of establishing a national airline, saying reliable regional airlift is critical to the territory’s future.

Describing LIAT as “a royal waste of time,” he claimed passengers are often left waiting “from two to six hours” without updates from airline staff. “If I was in charge, I would ban LIAT from coming here,” he said.

Although acknowledging the failed BVI Airways project, which later turned into a financial scandal, Skelton Cline said, “That does not mean that we should forego pursuing some kind of Virgin Islands Airways,” adding that government should seek partnerships with wealthy belongers to create a dependable regional carrier. 

He also urged travellers: “If you’re going fly, fly Winair for God’s sake.”