Page 25 - ATA

A16 LOCAL
Saturday 19 May 2018

Caribbean Aviation Meetup - the different and unique airlift conference

BAHAMAS - On June 12-14 the 3rd tunities and realistically improving those who hold a pilot license, the tablish business relations in the re-
annual Caribbean Aviation Meet- the way the Caribbean air trans- total of their flight hours goes in the gion for Canadian companies and
up conference will be held at the portation functions and to related hundreds of thousands. The value create partnerships with the Carib-
Atlantis Resort on the Bahamas. tourism matters. Five presentation of the conference is about profes- bean and there may be a special
The event is hosted by the Ministry examples from the program: sionals bringing their knowledge focus on airport development and
of Tourism and Aviation of the Ba- and their active experience to the improvement as well as establish-
hamas. “Competitiveness through Im- conference from which partici- ing government-to-government
proved Air Connectivity” pants can learn and take action relationships.
The conference concept is differ- “Airlift; The Caribbean’s Interstate when they return home. Coming
ent and unique. Last year it was Highway System” up with realistic suggestions for air- The Caribbean Aviation Meetup
named “one of the best aviation “Can Caribbean Carriers Stop Los- lift improvements throughout the is a conference with a vison. It is
forums in this part of the world” and ing Ground?” Caribbean region are a high prior- evolving from a pioneer startup to
already has proven to be most sig- “Sustainable Tourism and Airport ity; presenting statistics or making the full-fledged convention of the
nificant conference of its kind in Development are the two Sides of forecasts are of low importance. future, an extraordinary and out-
the Caribbean. The emphasis of the Same Coin” standing event on the international
this results and solutions-oriented “Nevis island; case study on mak- The Bahamas is an excellent con- conference calendar. Rather than
communication platform is on air- ing better decisions about market- ference location. Many multina- having many small conferences
lift. Airlift does not just refer to stake- ing spending, maximizing return of tional companies have their rep- by different industry segments, this
holders in the aviation industry but investment, and growing efficient- resentation for the Caribbean and platform envisions to bring all air-
also to those in the tourism industry ly” Latin America ‘next door’ in South- lift stakeholders together to make
as well as to government agen- In total there will be thirty presenta- ern Florida. The nearby Miami air- their attendance more effective
cies. The Caribbean islands are up tions by speakers from 13 different port is often an ideal international and efficient.
to 85% depending on tourism rev- countries and territories. hub to fly to the Bahamas for the It also avoids isolation of the various
enue. Airlift is crucial for the region. conference and on the return trip stakeholders and interest groups,
Flying matters are complicated in The speakers are selected mainly the US pre-clearance in Nassau is and instead furthers the Interaction
the region with its 20 plus territories for their expertise, not particularly an advantage. A growing num- and communication of profession-
and an extensive number of differ- for their title or position in their or- ber of companies in the USA and als of various industry segments,
ent jurisdictions, and yet there is no ganization. Together these profes- Canada do have a serious interest who otherwise rarely have an op-
‘Open-Sky’. sionals have hundreds of years of to reach out to the Caribbean. For portunity meet and understand
practical in the aviation industry instance, this year, agencies of the each other dilemmas as well as
The presentation topics are chosen be it at airports, airlines, or other Canadian government provide the opportunities and benefits of
for the purpose of creating oppor- aviation service providers. As for support around the event to es- cooperation. q