Sangster International Airport Named “Best Caribbean Airport” For The 15th Time

Located in Montego Bay, Jamaica, Sangster International Airport (SIA) first won an award for being the “best” in 2005, then again in 2009, and every year following. It was once again named, “Caribbean’s Leading Airport” at this year’s World Travel Awards (WTA). Based on these achievements, this airport has won the coveted title for 15 years.

Following the announcement of SIA winning the category, a ceremony was held in Montego Bay at the Sandals Resort. A statement was also released by the airport in which it declared gratitude for being bestowed with such an illustrious award for fourteen years in a row. It also stated that SIA was one of twelve Caribbean airports that were vying for the title.

According to Graham Cooke, founder of the World Travel Awards, the federation has the advantage of recognizing the leading parties in the travel industry from the key countries in the Caribbean region and the Americas. He declared that winners of the competition provide examples of brilliance in the field and assist the WTA to raise the standard of the business once more.

Shane Monroe, CEO of MBJ Airports Limited (which operates Sangster International Airport) expressed delight that Jamaica’s head international gateway was once again recognized by the WTA as the Caribbean’s leading airport. Monroe congratulated the stakeholders, management, and staff members of the airport who highly contributed to its achievements since 2009. He also assured that SIA and MBJ Airports will continue its endeavours to provide the best quality to consumers.

SIA, named after Sir Donald Sangster (former Jamaican Prime Minister) can manage nine million passengers every year. It is the most popular airport used by tourists to travel in and out of the country on the north coast. A site location was pinpointed in 1936 and construction for its runway began in 1940, however, was completed seven years later in 1947.

More so, the first international airline to start making flights was Pan American Airways (then referred to as Montego Bay Airport). Pan American controlled the airport until Jamaica’s government assumed control of the facility in 1949. Years later in 1959, a brand-new terminal was built to compensate for 500 passengers per hour in order to adjust to its rapid growth.

Last year, Sangster International Airport (SIA) handled a total of 2,589,259 passengers, which is over a 59% increase from the previous year, 2020.

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