Domestic airline Air Services Limited (ASL) has accused the management of the Ogle Airport of discrimination after construction works which the former recently undertook to expand its operations were halted by the airport’s management.
According to a release from ASL, it recently started foundation work on a plot of land, some 2 acres in size, located south of its operations at Ogle off the airside. The airline said it applied to the management of the airport, Ogle Airport Inc (OAI), for permission to carry out the work and its request was approved by a letter signed by OAI’s CEO Anthony Mekdeci. The plot is intended for use as a parking lot.
The land was surveyed by officials from the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GL&SC) in May this year but the survey plan was not provided to the company. The plot was cleared soon after and permission was then sought to have another acre but some 5 months after making such a request, OAI had not responded to the company, ASL said.
A letter was then sent to Chairman of the OAI Board Michael Correia last Thursday appealing to him to have the application dealt with. The company said that on Tuesday, Mekdeci, through an engineer, issued an order for it to cease all work on the land until a plan was presented and all lease arrangements were concluded.
OAI stated in a press release yesterday that the statements made by ASL in the media were untrue. OAI noted that the airport is an international aerodrome operating with a lease agreement made with the Government of Guyana and a lease had been issued under the Lands Department Act for the commercial purposes of establishing and maintaining an aerodrome. The statement said the airport operates in accordance with the requirements of the lease agreement, the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
The airport must confirm to the security and safety arrangements which apply to all international airports. OAI stated that ASL is the only operator, out of 12, which had difficulty in complying with these arrangements.
The airport body stated that on February 10 this year, OAI wrote to ASL advising that the airport management had reviewed an application sent by ASL requesting to use the area in question for a parking lot and the airport’s management also acknowledged a land lease application the following month. But ASL had already begun to clear the land and this was in clear violation of the required procedures, which, according to OAI, ASL is clearly familiar with.
The body stated that it was left with no choice but to terminate the work being undertaken. The airport’s management said ASL had “a documented history of refusing to adhere to established procedures and practice for construction of the airfield since 2003”.
The airport’s management subsequently approved the request for land to be leased and after a full survey was completed, OAI granted the company permission to commence clearing and preparing the land. However construction was not approved.
As regards the latter, OAI stated that the GL&SC required that before an application is approved, a signed agreement for a lease must be executed between the company making the application, in this case ASL, and the airport and the agreement must identify the property to be leased and the purpose for which it is to be used.
It was noted that ASL mentioned in sections of the media that the area was being built as a storage area.
Operations Manager of ASL Fazil Khan told Stabroek News this week that the company plans to move its current workshop to the new location while expanding its operations to facilitate three Cessna Grand Caravan aircraft which the company is in the process of purchasing.
ASL stated in a release that among its plans for the land in question was the construction of a dormitory for students and instructors of its flight school and while a reminder was sent to OAI on the issue, the airport’s management never responded to the company’s request.
Persons in aviation circles said there had long been a rift between the airline in question and the airport’s management, and a sister airline, which had more shares in the recently approved international port of entry, appeared to be favoured by the airport’s management.
It was pointed out too that the company in question had been able to house other non-aviation businesses such as a bus service as well as dwelling on the airport land, which according to the airport’s plan, was delegated mainly for aviation.
ASL noted that its founder Captain A Mazahar Ally was recently removed from the Board of Directors of OAI and a new investor was elected to serve in his position. At the same time relatives related to a sister airline were elected to serve in multiple positions on the board and Stabroek News understands that ASL may have parted ways with the Aircraft Owners Association (AOG).
ASL is considered one of the pioneers of the local aircraft industry, the company having been around since the 1950s. It is one of a few airlines, along with the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), Trans Guyana Airways and Roraima Airways which have worked over the years to develop the airport.
ASL said that while the airport management was carrying out its mandate correctly, the company believes it is being discriminated against by the board of OAI.
