PASSENGERS traveling out of Guyana who have had their duty-free items disposed of while in-transit can now breathe a sigh of relief.The management of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) and Caribbean Airlines Limited (CAL) have reached, the two entities said in a joint press statement.

Officials of CJIA, CAL and representatives from the Civil Aviation Authorities of both Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago met here on Tuesday to explore solutions to the issue currently affecting transit passengers who purchase duty free-items.

Just recently, CJIA in a strongly worded missive issued a 21-day ultimatum for CAL to honour a contractual agreement between the two, or have its operations at the airport terminated.

It was reported that outgoing CJIA passengers were routinely complaining about not being allowed to take their duty-free items with them when boarding a connecting flight to travel to the United States.

Travellers through a secure process will now be allowed to place their duty free items into their checked luggage

The airline subsequently defended these actions by noting that it must comply with restrictions that have been imposed through security processes. The Trinidad-based airline explained that these security processes are governed and regulated by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which also conducts audits for all carriers flying into the US.
These discussions, the statement said, provided a solution which would enable transit passengers to once again purchase duty free items, effective Wednesday June 22.

“Travellers through a secure process will now be allowed to place their duty free items into their checked luggage,” the statement added. However, it was noted that this procedure will not apply to BW 526, which operates non-stop Georgetown to New York.

According to the statement, passengers will be required to indicate their intention to purchase duty free items at the security checkpoint at the entrance to the airport and again at the Caribbean Airlines check-in counter before making their way to the duty-free shops.

Once the purchases are made, the purchaser will be escorted by security personnel to the baggage area in order to place the items in their checked luggage.

However, this process will be closely supervised by security and airport personnel and will be conducted in the full view of cameras. Duty free purchases will also need to be completed one hour before scheduled departure to ensure sufficient time for the new procedure.

Receptive of these terms, officials CJIA withdrew the ultimatum and expressed the view that over time the process will be refined.

“Following the successful resolution of the duty free issue, the Cheddi Jagan International Airport Corporation (CJIA) has officially withdrawn the warning issued to Caribbean Airlines, to cancel the Air Carrier Agreement, if the airline failed to comply with the procedure proposed by the CJIA,” the Ministry’s statement noted.

Chairman of CAL, Phillip Marshall also underscored the fact that the issue is one of national and regional significance given that Guyana is an important destination for Caribbean Airlines.

“We remain committed to our loyal Guyanese customers whom we have consistently served with reliable service since our start in 2007. Today’s meeting has enabled the CJIA and Caribbean Airlines to achieve a solution to this issue which ensures that Caribbean Airlines remains compliant with the TSA regulations and continues to provide quality service to our valued customers,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Civil Aviation Authorities of Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago also re-affirmed their commitment to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two authorities.

Under the MOU, passengers originating from Guyana and connecting on other Caribbean Airlines’ services will not be re-screened at Piarco International Airport.