Delays, flight cancellations rock CJIA

… as GTT’s Americas II cable damaged offshore Martinique

Acollapse of the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GTT) Americas II cable near the shores of Martinique, has caused hundreds of passengers departing Guyana to experience flight delays and cancellations.

According to sources at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), hundreds of persons were delayed at the airport as airlines were forced to do manual check-in of passengers. On Monday evening, Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson, who is responsible for transport, when contacted stated that flights continue to depart the CJIA, but at a “slow pace” as authorities were forced to do manual check-in, which has been leading to delays.CJIA

Meanwhile, GTT in a statement said the cable consortium has been working tirelessly to restore service, the company has redundant infrastructure and is working with the airline reservation management system, SITA, to migrate to redundant routes.

“GTT would like to reassure customers that the Internet infrastructure is working well via the redundant paths,” the statement read.

Captain Gerry Gouveia confirmed that Dynamic Airways cancelled one of its flights early Monday because of the disruption. He stated that the airline’s passengers were informed of the cancellation early and were told to check-in today.

He also explained that InselAir cancelled its flight because the crew time expired. Among those affected are numerous cub scouts who were in Guyana for a Caribbean Cuboree.

The CJIA also released a statement explaining the situation, and advising the travelling public that it is working with its stakeholders to ensure the Automated Airlines Check-in services are restored as soon as possible.

Apart from the aforementioned explanation, CJIA noted that some airlines are experiencing cancellations due to crew rotation and other operational issues during this peak season.

That aside, the management of CJIA said it will continue to work with its service providers to ensure that the Airline Check-in services are returned to normalcy in the fastest possible time.