Sangster International Airport

Sangster International Airport (IATA: MBJ, ICAO: MKJS) is an international airport located 3 mi (4.8 km) east of Montego Bay, Jamaica. The airport is capable of handling nine million passengers per year. It serves as the most popular airport for tourists visiting the north coast of Jamaica. The airport is named after former Jamaican Prime Minister Sir Donald Sangster.

"MKJS" redirects here. For the video game, see Monster Kingdom: Jewel Summoner.

Sangster International Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorMBJ Airports Limited
ServesMontego Bay, Jamaica
Elevation AMSL4 ft / 1 m
Coordinates18°30′13″N 77°54′48″W
Websitembjairport.com
Map
MKJS is located in Jamaica
MKJS
MKJS
Location in Jamaica
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
07/25 3,060 10,039 Asphalt
Statistics (2022)
Total passengers4,404,134
Aircraft operations37,957
Source: Sangster International Airport[1]

The airport is run by the management company, MBJ Airports Limited, whose leading stakeholder is Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico, and minority-owned by Vantage Airport Group.[2] Sangster was privatised and turned over by Airports Authority of Jamaica to the consortium in 2003.[3] A 2021 study found that Sangster International Airport was one of the top 20 most vulnerable international airports to climate change-caused sea level rise.[4]

History
An Air Canada aircraft landing at Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, 2009

Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, St. James, was first conceived in 1936 when the site now housing the Sangster International Airport was identified as one suitable for the construction of an airport in the town of Montego Bay. Originally named the Montego Bay Airport, a decision was made to build the runway in 1940, and the actual construction of the facility was completed on 18 February 1947. At the time of its completion, the town of Montego Bay was more like a playground for the rich and famous, and was then considered one of the premier vacation spots within the Caribbean, just as it is today.

The first international airline to fly into the Montego Bay Airport was Pan American Airways (which eventually became Pan Am), and the airport, which in comparison to today's standards was more like a small aerodrome, was operated by Pan American until 30 September 1949, when the Jamaican government took control of the facility. However, the Sangster International Airport, as it is known today, is nothing like it was in the early days. One of the most noticeable differences was that initially, the terminal building was on the northern side of the runway but was shifted to the southern side of the runway during one of the several upgrading exercises that took place at that facility, which was necessitated by the growth in air traffic over the years. Plans for the construction of a new terminal at its present location, on the southern side of the runway, were announced in July 1955. the plans for the new terminal building was part of what turned out to be a continued upgrading and restructuring of the facility, to enable it to cope with the growth in traffic. The original terminal was built and opened on 7 July 1959, with a capacity to accommodate 500 passengers per hour, and parking for seven aircraft at a time.

Divestment and expansion

Over the years, the upgrading process was a continuous one, ultimately the facility had grown into the larger of the three international airports in Jamaica, handling approximately 3.7 million passengers per annum in 2007, and had seen an increase in passenger and aircraft movement in 2009. The management and partners of the airport have been trying to seek passengers from Asia, but the project stalled in 2010.

Since January 2001, plans have been executed to expand the airport to the status of a world-class airport. The new eastern concourse of the Sangster International Airport (SIA) (the result of phases 1A and 1B) was officially opened in December 2005. Phase two was then due to begin towards the end of 2006; however because the economic conditions were favourable and the tourist trade in Jamaica is increasing, phase two was brought forward to January 2006.

A planned expansion of the main runway was in a preparation phase, but due to poor economic conditions, the runway expansion project was stopped indefinitely in 2012. This expansion would have afforded the airport a fully functioning 10,000-foot (3,000 m) runway to accommodate large aircraft. MBJ Airports Limited also commissioned a new customs hall, arrivals lobby and transportation center in March 2007. Since then, further expansion and renovation projects such as the relocation of the immigration hall and duty-free mall have been launched and were completed in September 2008. This increased the handling capacity to nine million passengers per annum. Plans are also in place for the relocation of the tower and the domestic terminal.

In 2006, there was a change in management at the airport following the change in the consortium that operates this facility. Relations between the new management and unions have been difficult, with a strike in November 2007 and in November 2009.

The airport won the World Travel Awards' "Caribbean's Leading Airport" for the years 2005, and 2009 to 2017.

Current and future expansion

Due to recent surges in passenger numbers and new routes being added, the airport consortium has taken on a number of projects to rehabilitate the airport in order to cope with the added demand. The airport will be renovating its check-in area which had been left untouched since 2008, as well as re-surfacing aprons, taxiway, and the runway. The airport also revamped its duty-free offerings and, in March 2018, welcomed three Starbucks outlets (part of Starbucks' first foray in the Jamaican market), complementing the already well-appointed airside offerings like Auntie Anne's, Quiznos, Nathan's, Dairy Queen, Moe's Southwest Grill and Wendy's. In March 2018, the airport announced its plan to revamp the airport's retail area to enhance the customer experience and optimize profits on retailing activities in the airport.[5]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger
AirlinesDestinations
Aerogaviota Havana, Holguín
Air Canada Rouge Toronto–Pearson
Seasonal: Montréal–Trudeau
Air Transat Montréal–Trudeau, Toronto–Pearson
Seasonal: Halifax
American Airlines Charlotte, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami, New York–JFK, Philadelphia
Seasonal: Boston, Chicago–O'Hare
American Eagle Austin
Canada Jetlines Toronto–Pearson (begins November 5, 2023)[6]
Caribbean Airlines New York–JFK
Seasonal: Fort Lauderdale
Cayman Airways Seasonal: Grand Cayman
Condor Seasonal: Dusseldorf, Frankfurt
Copa Airlines Panama City–Tocumen
Delta Air Lines Atlanta, New York–JFK
Seasonal: Boston, Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul
Edelweiss Air Seasonal: Zurich
Frontier Airlines Atlanta, Dallas/Fort Worth,[7] Orlando
Seasonal: Chicago–Midway, Denver, Miami, St. Louis, Tampa
InterCaribbean Airways Kingston–Norman Manley
International AirLink Negril
JetBlue Boston, Fort Lauderdale, New York–JFK, Orlando
Seasonal: Newark
Neos Seasonal: Milan–Malpensa, Verona
Norse Atlantic Airways Seasonal: London–Gatwick (begins December 1, 2023)[8]
Southwest Airlines Baltimore, Chicago–Midway, Fort Lauderdale, Houston–Hobby, Orlando
Seasonal: Kansas City,[9] St. Louis
Spirit Airlines Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Philadelphia
Sun Country Airlines Seasonal: Dallas/Fort Worth, Minneapolis/St. Paul
Sunwing Airlines Montréal–Trudeau, Toronto–Pearson
Seasonal: Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax, Moncton, Ottawa, St. John's
TUI Airways Birmingham, London–Gatwick, Manchester (UK)
Seasonal: Glasgow
TUI fly Belgium Brussels
TUI fly Netherlands Amsterdam
United Airlines Chicago–O'Hare, Denver (begins November 4, 2023),[10] Houston–Intercontinental, Newark
Seasonal: Washington–Dulles
Virgin Atlantic London–Heathrow1
WestJet Toronto–Pearson
Seasonal: Calgary, Edmonton (begins November 12, 2023),[11] Ottawa, Winnipeg

Notes:

^1 : While Virgin Atlantic operates some direct flights to Montego Bay, certain flights between London Heathrow and Montego Bay (in both directions) make a stop in Nassau. The airline does not have traffic rights to transport passengers solely between Montego Bay and Nassau.

Cargo
AirlinesDestinations
Airpak Express Boscobel, Kingston–Tinson Pen, Negril
FedEx Express Kingston–Norman Manley
IBC Airways Miami
Sunrise Airways Port-au-Prince
Tara Courier Boscobel, Kingston–Tinson Pen, Negril

Statistics
Annual passenger traffic at MBJ airport. See Wikidata query.
Traffic figures at Sangster International Airport
Year Passengers Change Aircraft movements Change
2014 3,633,998 - 40,764 -
2015 3,800,608 Increase 4.6% 41,338 Increase 1.4%
2016 3,952,273 Increase 4.0% 40,823 Decrease 1.2%
2017 4,284,558 Increase 8.4% 41,263 Increase 1.1%
2018 4,537,585 Increase 5.9% 41,005 Decrease 0.6%
2019 4,766,301 Increase 5.0% 42,283 Increase 3.1%
2020 1,624,827 Decrease 65.9% 19,357 Decrease 54.2%
2021 2,589,259 Increase 59.4% 28,391 Increase 46.7%
2022 4,404,134 Increase 70.1% 37,957 Increase 33.7%

Accidents and incidents

See also

References
  1. "Facts & Statistics - Montego Bay Jamaica Airport". MBJ Airports Limited. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  2. "Workers 'followed procedures' in allowing hijacker on plane". Toronto Star. 22 April 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  3. "Sangster International Airport privatised". Jamaica Gleaner. 22 April 2003. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  4. Yesudian, Aaron N.; Dawson, Richard J. (1 January 2021). "Global analysis of sea level rise risk to airports". Climate Risk Management. 31: 100266. Bibcode:2021CliRM..3100266Y. doi:10.1016/j.crm.2020.100266. ISSN 2212-0963. S2CID 233747386.
  5. Joe Bates (1 March 2018). "Revamp to boost commercial offerings at Jamaica's Sangster International Airport". Airport-world.com. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  6. "Canada Jetlines Adds Toronto – Montego Bay From Nov 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  7. Arnold, Kyle (3 November 2022). "Frontier Airlines adding crew base at DFW and flights to more destinations". The Dallas Morning News. Dallas, Texas. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  8. "Say goodbye to the winter blues as Norse Atlantic Airways launches ticket sales from London Gatwick to Barbados and Jamaica from only £449 return | MarketScreener". 3 May 2023.
  9. "Book Today: Southwest Airlines Extends Flight Schedule Through October". 9 March 2023.
  10. "United Expands Role as Denver's Most Flown Airline: Adds 35 Flights, Six Routes, 12 Gates, New Flight Bank and Three Clubs". Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  11. "WestJet NW23 Network Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
  12. Jamaica Observer, "From Avianca to CanJet: MoBay Airport at Centre of J'can Aviation History", 22 April 2009 (accessed 25 April 2009)
  13. "Jamaican hostage-taker makes Cuba demand". CNN. 21 April 2009. Retrieved 20 April 2009.

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