Reginald Allen, Contributor

Minister of Transport and Works Mike Henry

It's been a pet project of his from as far back as the 1980s, but long-serving Central Clarendon Member of Parliament (MP) and Transport and Works Minister, Mike Henry, has only now got a real basis on which to expect the realisation of his big dream.

Perched on a property of about 1,773 hectares or 2,900 acres of land at Vernamfield, in South West Clarendon, is the bare nucleus of a military airbase once operated by United States forces on the island. That set-up dates back to 1941 when the facility was acquired by the U.S. Army, resulting in it gradually dominating and shaping the development of the central Jamaica parish and, in the process, pulling the capital from Chapelton in the hills, down to May Pen on the plains.

Today, all of 66 years on, under plans being spearheaded by Mr. Henry, the facility is projected to not only rekindle its role as a catalyst for economic development in the parish, but to springboard industry and commerce islandwide. This is in conjunction with the planned return of the public rail service nationally, and the addition of a spur of the Highway 2000 toll road into the Vernamfield area.

As outlined by Minister Henry in a recent interview, the Vernamfield project should gradually include an air cargo hub, an airline maintenance facility, accommodation for the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) Air Wing and full outfitting as the island's third international airport. These components have been on the table of public discussion since 1992, when the MP initially submitted his proposal to the Government of the day, for the redevelopment of the long-abandoned aerodrome.

The proposal, though taking quite some time to grab top governmental attention and focus, became so attractive over recent years that it was adopted by then People's National Party (PNP) long before the recent general election and both major local political parties had the Vernamfield project in their manifestos for the polls. This was after the Development Bank of Jamaica had included the planned airport facilities in its portfolio of Millennium Projects aimed at promoting economic growth, job creation and sustained national development

Minister Henry spoke about his long-time dream in a recent interview:

Vernamfield, as a project, has been long in your thinking. How far back does the project go in your mind and how did the concept evolve in your thinking?

Over 20 years. It goes back to the Spring Plain project in the same South West Clarendon area, where I had proposed that the presence of a cargo airport would be vital to the expansion of the winter vegetable project, which involved produce with little over a week in terms of disposal time span and would have been best flown out of the area to the U.S. and other markets, to be more freshly delivered and competitive in the marketplace.

From your own concept and that which has so far been charted for the project, what are the real possibilities for Vernamfield at this time?

Just like how Vernamfield's development in its heyday as an airbase significantly influenced the growth of the nearby May Pen community into the parish capital, as against Chapelton way up in the hills, which lost its prime status, a major redevelopment of Vernamfield on a national and regional scale is projected to spur on major benefits nationally.

In essence, just like the Panama Canal has served on an international trans-shipment basis, with the joining of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans at that point, it is the same way that with the vast expansion in the movement of people and cargo on the global scene, the world now needs a 'Panama Canal of the air', which would critically drive the reach of the aeronautical industry across the equator, to facilitate more efficient distribution of goods and services worldwide. That's mainly what Vernamfield is about, that critical connecting point in the region. A radical idea it is to some people, but far less radical is it than the concept of the Panama Canal was until it was seriously examined.

These have also been indications that Vernamfield as planned, would hold some significant possibilities as a service centre for aircraft servicing in the region. Can you elaborate on that?

At present, aircraft from this region, including the North American continent in general, mostly have to be taken to Europe for servicing. Now with Vernanfield being larger than Manhattan in New York and the main airstrip there being extremely long and capable of being lengthened even further, this offers us the possibility of feasibly developing the kind of overall facility to accommodate pretty much any size and type of aircraft in the world, not only for cargo or travel purposes, but for servicing, which we could develop as a critical regional service industry.

The servicing of airplanes involves not only engine and other mechanical operations, but many other facets like upholstering and other aspects of craftsmanship, for which Jamaicans are noted internationally. So while we have been talking about all of this over the years, Europe has been busy delivering on these promises at pretty high costs. It's now time for us to get in on the action and that's another big focal point of the development plans.

What can be expected on the ground and in terms of the economic and social transformation of the surrounding communities from the Vernamfield re-development?

While I don't have the analysis before me just now, in terms of jobs, Vernamfield could end up directly or indirectly accounting for one tenth of the labour force nationally, based on the extensive cargo transfer possibilities there and the vast and highly lucrative aircraft servicing industry to be embarked on.

Remember that the cost for shipping and handling a product is now often more than the cost of producing the item itself and air freighting is the order of the day, as against businesses holding high volumes of inventory.

Along the same vein, aircraft servicing is an extremely big business and Jamaica would stand to benefit from offering much more cost-effective servicing to this entire region than the option of going all the way to Europe.

Likewise, with the proposed relocation of the JDF Air Wing to Vernamfield, the opportunity for establishing a commercial training school for pilots regionally is also being examined, this in the context that with terrorism having so tightened and restricted that industry in the United States since 9/11, this has significantly opened up that market in the region.

What kind of projected expenditure is on the cards to fully develop the Vernamfield project?

Somewhere about US$300-US$400 million for the initial stages, but I would expect it to reach a billion U.S. dollars when we are finished with the overall development, as Vernamfield will not be just the third international airport in Jamaica, but the international airport for the Southern Hemisphere.

With terrorism taking hold on the American aviation industry, there are millions of people living south of the equator who want to travel up north and into the Far East. They need a distribution point along the equator. It can be appreciated that America is involuntarily opening up much of the travel and cargo transfer market it once controlled, as it is understandably putting up a defensive barrier around itself instead of opening up to the world's need for greater flexibility and more options in terms of travel and air cargo needs.

Can you outline what that level of expenditure would produce on the ground at Vernamfield?

Everything that an international airport exists with, which would be done in stages, of course. There would be the JDF Air Wing with its own hanger, plus a hanger for the pilots' training school; a fuel field; hangers for the servicing of airplanes; with everything else required for both passenger service and cargo transfers, plus certainly facilities for extensive packing, coordination and distribution of both small and large cargo content.

Let it be understood that global trading now is largely about being able to order goods as required, whether in small, medium or large amounts, and getting them airlifted from various points to other points as quickly and cost-effectively as possible.

What kind of projected time- line is in place for the implementation of this overall project, from the preparatory stages to completion and commissioning of the facility into service?

The final marketing and feasibility study should be finished by March next year, as also an analysis of what the Government will have to do immediately after the same study has been adequately examined.

Thereafter, it's an incremental process, with basic logistical things being done, such as the clearing of the area, marking off the zones surrounding the airport, establishing the basic operating framework, such as buildings and general start-out setting up, and shortly thereafter, be ready to accept cargo planes. The air strip is there and as is, is longer than at Sangster or Norman Manley airports and can handle a heavier weight of plane than either of those airports.

However, it is important to understand that the structured development that I have tried to put in place relates directly to the ability of the country, including both private sector interests and the Government, to absorb the cost that is going to be involved. So we could put the development on a fast track or have a gradual phasing in of the various components, depending on the approach that is eventually decided on. In actual fact, it could be functional as early as late next year, depending, of course, on the level of private sector involvement and the clarity and focus of this involvement.

Q: You have spoken of a Highway 2000 spur into Vernamfield under the next phase of the toll highway network. Was this an original part of the highway plans or is it a new component brought on as part of the Government's thrust in support of the Vernamfield project?

A: No, it (the spur) was not an original part of the highway plans or a factor in cost ingredient of the original highway plans. But it is now being packaged as part of the Highway 2000 network continuity which is slated to start between February and June of next year.