Rymer: Airport traffic record shows need to expand

A steady increase in passenger traffic at Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport demonstrates the need to expand the facility to accommodate rising tourism numbers following Hurricane Irma and the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer.

In a statement delivered last Thursday in the House of Assembly, Mr. Rymer provided select figures for passenger traffic through the territory’s airports stretching back to 2016. 

In 2025, he said, there were 317,676 passenger movements — the highest number recorded since 310,089 in 2008.

The minister argued that the figures illustrate the territory’s transformation over the past decade: from hurricane recovery and a global pandemic to being poised to be a principal gateway for international air traffic in the region.

From 2016 to 2017, he said, passenger traffic fell from 234,130 to 205,463, marking a decrease of more than 25,000 in the year of Hurricane Irma. 

Mr. Rymer didn’t provide figures for 2018, but he said the 2019 traffic rose to 217,272 before the pandemic. 

He didn’t provide 2020 or 2021 numbers either, but he said 2022 saw only 175,532 passenger movements due to the lingering effects of reduced airlift and suppressed global travel demand. 

“However, in 2023, traffic rebounded to 218,582 passengers, an increase of 24.5 percent over 2022,” he said. “Importantly, this marked a full recovery to and slight exceedance of the pre-Covid-19 level of the 217,272 passengers.” 

‘More than statistics’

In 2024 — the first full year after American Airlines began offering direct flights between here and Miami — passenger numbers rose by 27.2 percent, clocking in at 278,085 for the year, according to the minister. 

Traffic climbed again in 2025, which topped 2024 by 14.2 percent, marking the first time in 17 years the VI’s airports surpassed the 300,000-passenger threshold, according to Mr. Rymer. 

“These figures are more than statistics,” he said. “They are direct measures of the recovery, resilience and renewed momentum of the Virgin Islands’ economy, our tourism sector and our connectivity with the region and world.” 

In 2025, he noted, passenger numbers were also 47 percent higher than in the last pre-Covid year, 2019. 

Airport project 

Mr. Rymer suggested that the rising numbers highlight the need to move ahead with the government’s controversial plan to launch a $400-million-plus project to extend the airport’s runway from 4,648 to 7,000 feet. 

He added that the outline business case for the project, prepared by consultant KPMG and approved by Cabinet but not yet made public, was submitted to the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office last November for review and feedback. 

“The premier and I also held constructive discussion with the UK overseas territories minister during the Joint Ministerial Council meetings in London” last November, he said. “We are grateful for the United Kingdom’s government’s full assurance and support for the runway expansion project, which is vital to the long-term growth and resilience of our tourism and aviation sectors.” 

Also at the JMC, London agreed to consider relaxing borrowing constraints under the 2012 Protocols for Effective Financial Management, potentially making it easier for the VI government to secure financing for the project, leaders have said. 

Canopy project 

Last Thursday, Mr. Rymer also provided updates on a plan to install new canopies connecting the Beef Island airport parking lots to the terminal buildings, with the goal of providing shelter from sun and rain while enhancing the building’s facade. 

The canopies, he said, are currently in the manufacturing phase and are scheduled to be shipped by the end of this month.

“Our airports are no longer just points of arrival and departure: They are strategic economic enablers, facilitating tourism, trade and investment,” he said. “The performance of our airports reflects a remark able post-pandemic recovery and the beginning of a new era of sustained growth. The VI has not only recovered but has surpassed its previous peak.”