(Trinidad Guardian) Works Minister Rohan Sinanan has described the arrival of the first commercial flight to T&T since the country’s borders were closed in 2020 as a “big step” for the country.
Caribbean Airlines Flight BW607 from Georgetown arrived at Piarco International Airport this morning just after 8 am.
On March 22, 2020 T&T’s Government closed international borders to all travellers, including T&T nationals, and suspended all commercial flights into the country to prevent further spread of the newly arrived COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are heading into the right direction meaning we have reached the point where we can say that we have opened the borders. We are still in the pandemic stage so we have to manage it. But we are happy that fully vaccinated citizens and visitors no longer have to stay in quarantine. That is a big step,” Sinanan told the media this morning after the first flight’s arrival.
He added that the shutdown affected T&T’s economy significantly and the Airport Authority of T&T lost revenue. He also said the response from passengers was smooth and they were happy with the protocols put in place.
Ricardo Milford who was one of the passengers on BW607 flight told the media he was happy to be back home in T&T
“The experience coming in was excellent. I cannot describe it in words. I’m happy to be back home. The future of our economy is balancing on top of a needle and everyone needs to get vaccinated,” he said.
The media was also given a tour of the COVID-19 testing lab at the Airport, where General Manager of the Airport Authority of T&T Hayden Newtown said T&T has taken the lead internationally by setting up these testing facilities at the airport.
“There is no other country in the region where there is a lab in the airport. We feel that this was very important in terms of ensuring we provided the best services. We’ll do the same thing at the ANR International Airport in Tobago.”
