Stranded Guyanese passengers start arriving

– Caribbean Airlines says no passenger was left unattended or subjected to “inhumane treatment”

Guyana is to formally complain to Caribbean Airlines Limited (CAL) for what officials call the mistreatment of Guyanese stranded at Trinidad’s Piarco International Airport, even as persons have begun to arrive in the country. 

During a media briefing on Wednesday, December 29, Guyana’s Tourism Minister Manniram Prashad said whilst government understands the unavoidable nature of the delays, it remains concerned over the way citizens of this country were treated whilst stranded. The delays were caused by one of the worst snowstorms in recent history to hit the U.S. eastern seaboard. 

Head of CAL’s Corporate Communications, Laura Asbjornsen, told Guyana Times International that no delayed passengers both in Guyana and at POS were left unattended or subjected to “inhumane treatment”, as claimed by the Tourism Ministry in a statement late Tuesday at the height of the ordeal. 

She said that despite huge operational obstacles over the past three days, Caribbean Airlines has been able to significantly clear its backlog of passengers.

“All passengers connecting to Guyana from the delayed New York and Toronto services were accommodated at the Crowne Plaza in Port of Spain or at the Princess Hotel in Georgetown. In addition, passengers opting to stay at the airport were given meal vouchers,” Asbjornsen said. “As soon as they became available, all information for flights was communicated to passengers via our call centre, website and via press releases to the media.” 

But, Minister Prashad said the issue was more about people being home with their families as against being put up at hotels. He said investigations have revealed that information was not forthcoming to passengers. 

Prashad said he was told that the stranded Guyanese passengers came to Trinidad from Toronto, Canada, and were to join a connecting flight from Port of Spain to Georgetown, which was coming out of the JFK International Airport in New York. However, due to the snowstorm in the U.S., that flight was cancelled and those passengers were consequently held up at Piarco. He said the airline explained that all of its other scheduled flights in the Caribbean went ahead as normal. 

“If you know that you have this problem and you have no connection, the flight should not have departed Toronto,” a disappointed Prashad said. 

Meanwhile, like President Jagdeo had indicated earlier, Prashad thinks it is time government really considers “getting back in the airline business”. 

He told reporters that it is an issue under serious consideration, noting that the economics are being worked out. Already KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Air One, Jet Blue and Red Jet have indicated an interest in being air carriers for Guyana. Red Jet flights should start early in the New Year.  

Not only will this reduce the fares because of competition, but it will also see Guyanese nationals receiving first-class treatment. 

“We cannot tolerate this situation anymore, where Guyanese are treated with scant disrespect,” Prashad noted.