Canouan Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Owner | Government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | ||||||||||
| Serves | Canouan | ||||||||||
| Location | Charlestown | ||||||||||
| Opened | May 11, 2008[1] | ||||||||||
| Hub for | SVG Air | ||||||||||
| Time zone | AST (UTC−04:00) | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 11 ft / 3 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 12°41′57″N 061°20′33″W / 12.69917°N 61.34250°W | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  TVSC Location in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | |||||||||||
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| Runways | |||||||||||
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Canouan Airport (IATA: CIW, ICAO: TVSC) is the airport located on the island of Canouan in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.[2] The airport serves the surrounding tourist areas and environs of the Grenadines and is a major destination during the Caribbean winter leisure season. Aside from facilitating regular passenger flights, the airport is also open for international corporate jet operations and charter flights. Canouan Airport was the main business aviation airport in St. Vincent and the Grenadines before the opening of Argyle International Airport. The terminal has a CIP (Commercially Important People) lounge and other facilities for international passengers and a domestic hub for St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It is the second largest airport in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, after Argyle International Airport. The airport often served as the alternate airport for E.T. Joshua Airport, now a decommissioned airport in St. Vincent and other Grenadines airports.
Since the longest runway in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, at 5,875 feet (1,791 m), was located at Canouan Airport, it was the airport used to receive illegal immigrants deported from the United States[4] by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Air Operations-detainee removal flights, prior to the opening of AIA.
The airport is built in traditional Grenadines style with an open-air terminal with roof covered in cane palm fronds, its wooden walls and columns made of eucalyptus logs. The terminal architecture is based on the Native indigenous people of the Caribbean Tainos and Arawak structures, giving passengers a paradise feeling. The terminal has no airbridges; walk-boarding is used on all stands and mobile stairways or the aircraft's own airstairs are used for embarking and disembarking passengers.
In the 2000s, an extensive modernization of the airport began. A land reclamation project and runway extension were completed at the end of March 2008. Overall runway length increased from 3,455 to 5,875 ft (1,053 to 1,791 m).[5] This extension of the runway makes the airport accessible by a larger number of aircraft and can now accommodate jets such as the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 carrying over one hundred and twenty passengers from Europe, North and South America. Before the runway extension, the ATR 72 of American Eagle (Executive Airlines) was the largest aircraft to serve the airport. In 2010 American Eagle ended daily flights from San Juan, Puerto Rico to Canouan.[6] In addition to the runway extension, the control tower was raised some 3 m (10 ft) and the arrivals terminal was also extended to accommodate the increasing aviation services and visitors to the island. Airport apron expansion and the further development of air navigational systems were completed in 2011. It is one of only two airports in St. Vincent and the Grenadines large enough to handle large airliners. This airport was developed to meet international standards.
Canouan Airport is a small but bustling one that plays an important role in the growing economy of Canouan. Luxury tourism and real-estate contribute significantly to the island's economy and Canouan is popular with private jet travelers around the world. It is the home of some smaller general aviation businesses, including Canouan Aviation Services which operates from the general aviation area on the south-western side of the runway. Connection is maintained from the airport for several smaller airports in the Grenadines. Its size and location makes it the most important airport in the Grenadines.
It is one of five airports in the multi-island nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the others being Argyle International Airport in St. Vincent, J. F. Mitchell Airport in Bequia, Mustique Airport and Union Island Airport.
SVG Air, is a national airline of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, along with Mustique Airways. SVG Air and Mustique Airways have combined to form a SVG Air/Grenadine Air Alliance, operating 17 Aircraft, with bases in St. Vincent, Antigua and Grenada.[7] Offering visitors and residents a wider choice of International Gateways in and out of St. Vincent & the Grenadines.
- ^ "New EC 58 million airport opened at Canouan". Searchlight Newspaper. 16 May 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
- ^ a b "Airport information for TVSC". World Aero Data. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) Data current as of October 2006. Source: DAFIF. - ^ Airport information for CIW at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
- ^ Deportee from the United States disembarked in Canouan
- ^ "Work begins on extension of the Canouan Airport". Searchlight Newspaper. 2 February 2007. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
- ^ American Eagle ends flights to Canouan Dominica News Online
- ^ Ben Harrison - International Correspondent (17 February 2017). "SVG Air / Grenadine Air Alliance: Bridging the gap". The Vencentian Newspaper.
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