Major Anegada airport risks overdevelopment, says Vanterpool

Former Communications and Works Minister Mark Vanterpool has warned that developing a major airport on Anegada could lead to overdevelopment, while questioning how passengers arriving there would reach other parts of the BVI. Speaking on Talking Points on September 28, Vanterpool said he supported improving Anegada’s airport but had reservations about making the island the main arrival point for passengers travelling to the territory. His comments followed a listener’s question about developing an airport on Anegada instead of Beef Island. The question referred to a retired chief surveyor from Barbados who reportedly considered Anegada suitable for an 8,000-foot runway, drawing a comparison with Grand Cayman. Vanterpool said he had heard the suggestion before. However, he questioned the practical arrangements for transferring passengers onwards by aircraft or boat.

“I don’t know how that will work. It probably can work. And I am usually open to ideas,” Vanterpool said. He said he remained willing to consider an explanation of how such an arrangement could operate. However, he had not yet been able to envisage it working. Vanterpool also raised concerns about preserving the island. He said the territory needed to protect some of its smaller islands from overdevelopment and warned that a major airport could threaten Anegada’s character. “So that’s another aspect that we have to bear in mind. And I wouldn’t like to see it come to that point,” he stated. Anegada already receives international flights through the Captain Auguste George International Airport. Flights from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and St Thomas, USVI, resumed on March 23, 2024, facilitated by locally owned charter operators Fly BVI and Island Birds. Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer…