The St Helena Airport
The St. Helena Airport is about 10 miles from Jamestown and is located on the prosperous bay plain, Prosperous Bay plain which was once known for its rugged baron rocky outcrops and wide-open space that was originally used only by locals to collect high-quality stone for property development and also used as access to gain access to local coastal fishing hot spots.
St. Helena was once known to be one of the most remote islands in the world, and the construction of its airport was a significant change to the island’s existence. The idea of building an airport on St. Helena dates back several decades. The island had long been accessible only by sea, primarily through the RMS St. Helena, a dedicated mail and cargo ship serving the route between St Helena, Ascension Island and South Africa a sea voyage that took several days, making travel to and from the island lengthy and challenging.
The need for an airport became increasingly apparent to improve accessibility, boost tourism, and provide better healthcare access and economic opportunities for residents.
The construction of the St. Helena Airport was a monumental task due to the island’s remote location and rugged terrain. The project began in earnest in 2012 and faced numerous challenges, including logistical difficulties, environmental concerns, and technical issues. The runway was built on Prosperous Bay Plain, which required significant earth-moving and levelling work.
One of the most significant challenges was dealing with wind shear, a sudden change in wind speed and direction that can complicate aircraft landings. The wind conditions at St. Helena proved problematic, leading to extensive testing and adjustments to ensure the safety of the airport.
The St Helena Airport was initially slated to open in 2016 but encountered delays due to the aforementioned wind shear problems. After several test flights and adjustments, the airport officially opened in 2017. The inaugural commercial flight was operated by SA Airlink, connecting St. Helena with Johannesburg, South Africa, with a refuelling stop in Windhoek, Namibia.
The St. Helena Airport has had a transformative impact on the island. It significantly reduces travel time to and from the island, making it more accessible to tourists, residents, and businesses. The improved accessibility was expected to boost the island’s economy, primarily through tourism, which in turn would have created jobs and fostered economic development.
The airport also plays a crucial role in emergency medical evacuations, allowing patients to be transported quickly to medical facilities in South Africa for treatment, which was previously a much slower process by sea.
The St. Helena Airport is served by regular weekly flights by SA Airlink, which connects the island to Johannesburg. The airport has a single runway, 1,950 meters in length, capable of handling medium-sized passenger aircraft. The terminal facilities are modest but sufficient for the volume of traffic the airport handles.
Some facts about the Airport.
In the Beginning
Historically, many attempts were made to construct an airport on St Helena, it is said that the first attempt was in the 1940’s followed by feasibility studies in the 1960s, 1970’s and in 1990. In 2001, a company by the name of SHELCO submitted their plans to construct an airport on Prosperous Bay Plain, the plans showed two runway alignments. A year later SHELCO announced plans to build a 5-star hotel in conjunction with developing air access. This however was superseded by the British and St Helena Governments’ plans to construct the airport themselves. In 2004, the UK government commissioned WS Akins to carry out a comprehensive study for air access to the island. The report demonstrated that an airport would provide the catalyst for economic growth for the island.
How it all began
In 2005, Britain announced its plan to construct an airport on St Helena and the design process went ahead. WS Akins was consulted to prepare the generic designs and subsequently, the tenders to design construct and operate were issued. Several interested contractors visited St Helena and in 2008, a company called IMPREGILO was chosen as the preferred bidder to construct an airport on St Helena.
The St Helena Airport pause
In December 2008, the British government announced a “pause” in the airport project; the credit crunch was blamed for the pause. However, IMPREGILO pulled out of the running which brought a South African company called BASIL READ back in contention and BASIL READ was eventually awarded the design construct and operate contract in November 2011.
Funding for the St Helena Airport
The airport project was funded with UK aid administered by DFID. The contract to design build and operate an airport in St Helena was signed in November 2011 between BASIL READ and the St Helena Government. The airport project is estimated to cost GBP 250M
The project consisted of a purpose-modified ship to carry the construction materials from West Africa to St Helena, the design and construction of 14km of access road, 6 million litres of bulk fuel installation, drilling and blasting of 8000 cubic meters of rock, 2000m of concrete runway, terminal buildings, tower and fire facilities with associated lighting navigation and other services.
People who started the project
Approximately 430 staff were employed on the project which includes both overseas and on the island. The staffing on the island was approximately 360 of which 240 were SAINTS. The first Saint Helenian to be employed by BASIL READ on the project was a civil engineer named Alan Hudson, who was employed as a Site Agent. He assisted BASIL READ to mobilise on the island. He also found the water which was vital for the project and assisted in the drilling of several groundwater boreholes. Subsequently went on to manage all of the drill and blasting operations in the earthworks. BASIL READ established a depot in Namibia to tranship materials to St Helena for the airport and also converted a landing craft type ship to carry fuel, plant and materials to the island. This ship, the NP Glory 4 was designed to dock against a newly constructed temporary jetty in Rupert’s Bay. The temporary Jetty was constructed in April 2012. In July 2012, the NP Glory 4 was the first ship to dock against the shore.
The St Helena Airport timelines
Construction of the airport started on Prosperous Bay Plain in August 2012, the first blast on the project started in November 2012 which signalled the start of the major earthworks to fill dry gut. The access road started in March 2012 and was completed in November 2012. The dry gut fill started in December 2012 and was completed in September 2014. All the major earthworks were completed in December 2014. Work started on the concrete runway in September 2014 and was completed in September 2015. The combined building and the terminal building was started in July 2013 and was completed in February 2016.
The first Aircraft to land on St Helena.
The first aircraft to land on St Helena was the Beechcraft King Air 200 type aircraft. She landed on the newly constructed runway on 15 September 2015. This was a historical moment watched by people on the Island.
St Helena Aircraft capability
The runway was designed to accommodate the Boeing 737- 800 or Airbus 319. The runway is approximately 2000m long with 1550m of available landing length.
BASIL READ in collaboration with LANSERIA Airlines originally had a ten-year contract to operate the airport and air access to St Helena. COMAIR was selected as the preferred airline to operate an air service from Johannesburg (OR) Tambo International to St Helena and return. COMAIR bought a brand new 737- 800 aircraft to provide weekly scheduled flights from Johannesburg to St Helena and return, however on the first flight Comair experienced some difficulties with landing the new 737 at St Helena’s airport and the airport was branded as the world most useless airport. it was also unfortunate that Basil reads contract was ended by the St Helena Government after the collapse of the company in 2018.
The St Helena Airport is now operated by the St Helena Government/The St Helena Airport Limited.
Longer-term
The construction of the Airport was completed in February 2016 and was officially scheduled to open to commercial air traffic in May 2016, however, that never happened.
St Helena’s airport offers an open skies policy.
The first chartered commercial flight with paying passengers took place on the 3rd of May 2017. The normal flight schedule before COVID-19 departs Johannesburg every Saturday.
