Suriname Airways (SLM) inaugural flight to Guyana landed at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport(CJIA) around 10am Tuesday, with the Dutch-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member state president Desi Bouterse and delegation on board.
The flight, after a simple launching ceremony in Georgetown, took off for Miami, with a number of Caribbean media crews on-board, along with its scheduled passengers.
This flight marks the airline’s return to the Guyanese skies after a six-year break.
SML will provide direct flights from Georgetown to Miami at a cost of US$ of us $406
Already the airline is flying from Paramaribo to Georgetown twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays at a cost of US$ 250 and according to the SML chief Executive Officer Ewald Honshu’s the airline is looking to add the Georgetown -Toronto route soon.
Suriname’s transport, industry and communication minister Falisie Pinas, spoke of the important role this can play in promoting tourism, while alluding to the benefits the entire Caribbean stand to gain from this new route.
“Regional integration and tourism development are two important policy goals of Suriname and transportation can contribute very well in achieving these goals, also our membership and the participation of our country in the regional organization CARICOM, Can benefit from this new route ” Pinas told reporters after the flight landed
Guyana’s minister of transport and hydraulics Robeson Benn reassured of Guyana’s commitment and confirmed optimism at the possibility of the development of the South-South air linkages into Brazil and South American territories. He also spoke of Guyana’s plans to extend the CJIA, to accommodate larger carriers.
“There is an allocation this year in our national budget of over GY$4.5B towards these expansion works, which would see us being able to continue to facilitate the development in the air transport sector in Guyana and to facilitate airlines from other countries ” Benn said.
On Saturday last Suriname’s largest insurance group Assuria N.V. launched two offices here to provide general and life insurance services to locals.