Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport

Robert L. Bradshaw Airport (IATA: SKB, ICAO: TKPK), formerly known as Golden Rock Airport, is an international airport located just northeast of Basseterre, on the island of Saint Kitts, serving the nation of Saint Kitts and Nevis. It was named after the first Premier of St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla (as it then was), Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw. In 2008, the airport handled 399,706 passengers.

Robert L. Bradshaw Airport
IATA: SKB ICAO: TKPK
Summary
Airport type	Public
Operator	St Christopher Air & Sea Ports Authority
Location	Basseterre
Elevation AMSL	170 ft / 52 m
Coordinates	17°18′41″N 062°43′07″W
Map
SKB Location on map of Saint Kitts and Nevis
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 07/25 2,439 8,000 Asphalt
Source:

Overview

A major renovation was completed in December 2006. The US$17 million project financed by loans from the St Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla National Bank and Taiwan, includes expansion of the parking apron to accommodate six wide-bodied aircraft at the same time, complete resurfacing of the 2,439 m (8,002 ft) runway and construction of a new taxi-way. Construction started late 2004. Up to 6 wide-bodied jets can now be accommodated on the tarmac. The airport can accommodate commercial jumbo jets and handles scheduled non-stop jet flights to Canada and the United States, as well as numerous regional commuter flights from within the Caribbean area.

The airport also provides facilities for cargo and private jets. The largest aircraft ever to land here was a Boeing 747-400. A chartered Sri Lankan Airlines Airbus A340-300 made aviation history when they operated a charter flight to St Kitts in 2011, a nearly 10,000-mile journey from Colombo-BIA, Sri Lanka.

In 2013, through a joint venture between Taiwan and St. Kitts, where Taiwan donated $1 million for the project, a 1MW solar farm was constructed on the airport premises. The solar panels display the text: "Welcome to SKB".^[1]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Airlines	Destinations
Air Canada Rouge	Seasonal: Toronto–Pearson
Air Sunshine	Anguilla, Saint Croix, Saint Thomas, San Juan, Tortola
American Airlines	Miami Seasonal: Charlotte, New York–JFK
British Airways	Antigua, London–Gatwick
Cape Air	Nevis, St. Thomas[2]
Caribbean Airlines	Antigua, Barbados,[3] Port of Spain
Delta Air Lines	Seasonal: Atlanta, New York–JFK (resumes January 11, 2025)[4]
InterCaribbean Airways	Barbados
JetBlue	New York–JFK[5]
Silver Airways	San Juan
Sky High	Santo Domingo–Las Americas[6]
Sunrise Airways	Antigua,[7] Sint Maarten[8]
Trans Anguilla Airways	Anguilla, Antigua, St. Eustatius
United Airlines	Seasonal: Newark
Winair	Antigua, Dominica–Douglas-Charles, Sint Maarten, Tortola[9]

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
Air Cargo Carriers	Dominica–Douglas-Charles
Amerijet International	Miami
FedEx	San Juan

Other facilities

The airport houses the St. Kitts Outstation of the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority.^[10]

Accidents and incidents

• On 26 September 2009, British Airways Flight 2156 to V. C. Bird International Airport, Antigua, operated by Boeing 777-236 G-VIIR entered the runway through the wrong taxiway, prior to takeoff. This resulted in the aircraft having 695m less available for takeoff, compared to the correct taxiway entry. The takeoff was however completed normally without incident or injuries. The AAIB report concluded the following factors contributed to the incident: "The airport authority had not installed any taxiway or holding point signs on the airfield. The crew did not brief the taxi routing. The crew misidentified Taxiway Bravo for Taxiway Alpha and departed from Intersection Bravo. The trainee ATCO did not inform the flight crew that they were at Intersection Bravo."^[11]

References

1. Staff, Caribbean Journal (17 September 2013). "St Kitts and Nevis Completes Construction of Airport Solar Farm". Caribbean Journal. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
2. "Cape Air Dec 2024 Caribbean Network Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 19 November 2024.
3. "interCaribbean increases its flights in Barbados and will add more aircraft". 14 February 2023.
4. "Delta NW24 Caribbean Network Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
5. "JetBlue Expands Caribbean Network, Adds Service to Belize and St. Kitts". Travel Pulse. 6 June 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
6. "Destinations – Sky High". Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
7. "Sunrise Airways Adds 3 Antigua Routes from late-May 2024".
8. "Sunrise Airways NW24 Caribbean Network Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
9. "Winair Adds St. Kitts – Tortola Sector From mid-Jan 2024". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
10. "St. Kitts Outstation." Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority. Retrieved on 23 December 2012.
11. AAIB (July 2010). "Report No: 4/2010. Report on the serious incident to Boeing 777-236, G-VIIR at Robert L Bradshaw International Airport, St Kitts, West Indies on 26 September 2009". Retrieved 31 August 2010.

External links

Media related to Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport at Wikimedia Commons