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Grantley Adams International Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Owner | Government of Barbados | ||||||||||
| Operator | GAIA Inc.[3] | ||||||||||
| Serves | Barbados | ||||||||||
| Location | Seawell,Christ Church | ||||||||||
| Hub for | InterCaribbean Airways | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 170 ft / 52 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 13°04′29″N059°29′33″W / 13.07472°N 59.49250°W /13.07472; -59.49250 | ||||||||||
| Website | gaia.bb | ||||||||||
| Maps | |||||||||||
 Barbados airport diagram | |||||||||||
  TBPB Location within Barbados | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2024) | |||||||||||
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| Source:DAFIF,[4][5]ACI's 2014 World Airport Traffic Report. | |||||||||||
Grantley Adams International Airport (GAIA) (IATA:BGI,ICAO:TBPB) is aninternational airport at Seawell,Christ Church,Barbados, serving as the country's onlyport of entry by air.
The airport is the only designated port of entry for persons arriving and departing by air in Barbados and operates as one of the major gateways to theEastern Caribbean. It has direct service to destinations in theUnited States,Canada,Central America andEurope. In 2024, the airport was theeighth-busiest airport in the Caribbean region and the second-busiest airport in theLesser Antilles afterQueen Beatrix International Airport onAruba. GAIA also remains an important air-link forcruise ship passengers departing and arriving at thePort of Bridgetown,[6] and a base of operations for theRegional Security System (RSS), and the Regional (Caribbean) Police Training Centre.
The airport's former name wasSeawell Airport before being dedicated posthumously in honour of the firstPremier of Barbados, SirGrantley Herbert Adams (1898–1971) in 1976. The airport is in theAtlantic time zone (UTC−4:00)[7] and is in World Area Code region No. 246 (by theUS Department of Transportation). It was a hub for now-defunct Barbadian carriersCaribbean Airways[8] (not to be confused with the currently-as of 2025-operatingCaribbean Airlines) andREDjet, the home for the charter carrier West Indies Executive Air, and former home to the flight training school Coconut Airways.
Grantley Adams International Airport lies 12.9 km (8.0 mi) from thecentre of the capital cityBridgetown, in an area officially known as Seawell. This is contrary to most information services stating the airport as being inside the capital. Grantley Adams Airport is the main air transportation hub for theEastern Caribbean.
The terrain is relatively flat and quite suburban. The airport lies in the south-eastern portion of parish ofChrist Church, close to the southern tip of the island. The airport has easy access to theABC Highway/highway 7 heading towards the capital and locations to the north and west coast.
The airport has undergone a multi-phase US$100 million upgrade and expansion by thegovernment, which added a new arrivals hall adjacent to the prior arrivals/departures terminals. Construction was made slightly more complicated because the airport has to remain open for up to 16 hours per day. Its current infrastructure is supposed to meet the needs of Barbados until at least 2015. The phase III construction project, which is yet to be completed will see changes made to the aeroplane parking configuration.[9][needs update]
The first recorded flight in to Barbados was in 1929 at today's Rockley Golf Course.[10]
As far as air transportation at the site of present-day facility, then known as Seawell Airport, history goes back as far as September 1938 when a mail plane fromKLM Royal Dutch Airlines landed on the site from Trinidad.[11] At the time there was merely a grassy strip as the runway. The strip was paved some time later and in 1949 the first terminal was built on the site, to replace a shed that was being used. This ushered in the facility being formally known as the Seawell Airport due to the plantation.[citation needed]
During the 1960s the eastern flight-range just south-east of the airport became known as Paragon. This area became the initial base of a 'High Altitude Research Project' known asProject HARP. Project HARP was jointly sponsored byMcGill University in Canada and theUnited States military.[12]
In mid-October 1983, the civilian international airport became the scene of intense military activity. Then Prime MinisterTom Adams, the son of the airport's eponym, offered use of the facility to the U.S. military as a forward staging and support area for the diverse American aircraft which were deployed from the mainland inOperation Urgent Fury.[13] The airport also became a press center for more than 300 international journalist who had been dispatched by their organizations to report on the surprise multi-national intervention into the neighbouring island of Grenada. The younger Adams played a key leadership role in gathering support among English-speaking Caribbean nations for the operation to restore democracy and the rule of law on Grenada after an internal leadership dispute degraded into political assassination and civilian bloodshed.[13]
Also in 1983, the US-sponsoredinvasion of Grenada prompted the United States to form another agreement with Barbados. As part of the deal, the US expanded a part of the current airport infrastructure. This prepared Grantley Adams Airport to be used as a base.[14] As part of the plan to maintain for lasting stability in Grenada, the United States assisted in the establishment of theRegional Security System (RSS) at the eastern Grantley Adams flight-range. The RSS was (and still is) a security unit focused on providing security for theEastern Caribbean.
Grantley Adams International Airport, as it is known today, handles most large aircraft includingBoeing 747s. The airport was one of a handful of destinations whereBritish Airways'Concorde aircraft made regularly scheduled flights (and got repairs). The flight time of Concorde from the United Kingdom to Barbados was less than 4 hours.[15] The first Concorde visit to Barbados was in 1977 for the Queen'sSilver Jubilee. During the 1980s, Concorde returned for commercial flights to Barbados and thereafter flew to Barbados during the busy winter season. On 17 October 2011, ZA006, aBoeing 787 Dreamliner arrived at BGI for testing. This was followed by a 24 October arrival of theBoeing 747-8 for further high humidity environment testing.
Since Grantley Adams International Airport had become a relatively busy airport for such a small island and based on an expected increase in future air traffic[16] theGovernment of Barbados commenced a US$100 million programme to revamp the airport's infrastructure.[17][18]
Phase I, which is now complete, saw an upgrading of the runways, taxiways, parking aprons, and approach lighting. This phase included the Government of Barbados acquiring private land adjacent to the landing strip to bring the airport into compliance with new international aviation regulations.[17][18]
Phase II (also complete) included adding a new arrivals terminal adjacent to the current building; moving arrivals from the older terminal, renovating the older terminal as a departures facility, and bringing the infrastructure into the new millennium.[17][18]
On 1 June 2007, the Bds$1.7 million Club Caribbean Executive Lounge and Business Centre[19] was opened as an added amenity for business travelers. The centre contains 5,000 sq ft (460 m2) and is on themezzanine level.[20] The centre is meant to be used by special customers of several airlines at the terminal.[21]
The Phase III expansion had to wait until the completion of the2007 Cricket World Cup. It envisions the addition of new airport terminalJetway (gates), new spacious departure lounges much closer to the aeroplanes and air bridges to make connections much easier. Also nearing completion is the expanded duty-free shopping area and restaurants for travelers. In 2010 airport authorities stated that traffic to the airport was up 58%[22] and that a 20-25-year plan[23] was being formed for the facility including an addition to the taxiway and renovation of the cargo facilities up to international standards.
After the expansion project, the airport's arrivals facility was moved to a separate new 70,000-square-foot (6,500 m2) building adjacent to the previous structure. This allowed the departures area to occupy much of the previous shared structure. The new arrivals terminal was built with five largebaggage carousels, along with customs and immigration windows.
Grantley Adams International Airport has two terminal buildings designed to appear as one single continuous structure.
The first structure and oldest is the current departures terminal. This terminal stretches from gates 11–13. Before the 2000–2006 expansion project, the original single terminal building housed both the arrivals and departures facilities. The former layout was divided in two with a few duty-free shops[24] and an open-air area in the middle with trees and other greenery which was open to both halves of the terminal. The newtranslucent membrane that towers over the airport shows where the old terminal was split in two. Additionally the membrane tent covers the gap between the old and new terminal and gives the appearance of being a single long building.
The new terminal spans gates 1–10. The terminal currently has 23 ground-level gates.[25]
The airport is at an elevation of 52 metres (171 ft) abovemean sea level.[6][7] It has a single two-mileasphalt pavedrunway: 09/27 measuring 11,017 by 148 feet (3,358 m × 45 m).[4] The airport has a single east-westerly runway, connected by six taxiway intersections with the aircraft parking area which is adjacent to the main terminals. As a result of thetradewinds that blow from the Atlantic Ocean across Barbados from the east, planes usually land and take-off in an easterly direction. This results in a typical flight path for arriving aircraft along the west coast of Barbados, while departing flights usually fly along the east coast. During some weather disturbances, such as passing hurricanes or tropical systems, planes may take off or land in a westerly direction such as on 29 August 2010.[26]
TBPB is equipped withVOR/DME[27] and anILS system. The airport operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.[28]
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Besides the arrivals and departures terminals, Grantley Adams International Airport included provisions for a new cargo building in the 2000–06 expansion project. This included postal services and airline support. The cargo facility is located on the western end of the airport next to the arrivals building.
| Passengers | Change from previous year | Aircraft operations | Change from previous year | Cargo (metric tons) | Change from previous year | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 2,165,125 |  0.68% | 38,986 | N.D. | 19,479 | N.D. |
| 2009 | 1,939,059 |  10.44% | 34,454 | 11.62% | 21,098 | 8.31% |
| 2010 | 1,995,167 | 2.89% | 35,378 | 2.68% | 22,335 | 5.86% |
| 2011 | 2,074,654 | 3.98% | 35,452 | 0.21% | 22,720 | 1.72% |
| 2012 | 1,967,571 | 5.16% | 34,476 | 2.75% | 22,322 | 1.75% |
| 2013 | 1,845,430 | 6.21% | 31,670 | 8.14% | 21,567 | 3.38% |
| 2014 | 1,858,176 | 0.69% | 30,247 | 4.49% | 18,852 | 12.59% |
| 2015 | 1,966,789 | 5.84% | 30,508 | 0.87% | 14,778 | 21.61% |
| 2016 | 2,086,209 | 6.08% | 30,398 | 0.36% | 13,438 | 9.97% |
| 2017 | 2,172,603 | 4.15% | 32,352 | 6.43% | 11,721 | 12.77% |
| 2018 | 2,194,931 | 1.02% | 33,296 | 3.0% | 10,987 | 6.7% |
| 2019 | 2,298,491 | 7.16% | 32,854 | 1.37% | 10,231 | 7.4% |
| Source: Airports Council International. World Airport Traffic Reports (2009,[60] 2011,[61] 2012,[62] 2013,[63] 2014[64]) | ||||||
The head office of theBarbados Civil Aviation Department is on the airport property.[65] In addition Barbados Meteorological Services,[66] operates a dopplerweather radar station at the airport.[67]
To the east of the main Grantley Adams Airport is the old Spencers Plantation, part of the new expanded airport grounds and site of the British Airways 8,534 m2 (91,860 sq ft) Concorde museum. The museum featured a dedicated hall where one of the 20 retired Concorde aircraftBAC/SNIAS Concorde 212 G-BOAE is now on display as a loan to the Government of Barbados.[73]
On 2 November 1977 G-BOAE was the same aircraft thatQueen Elizabeth II traveled flying from Grantley Adams toLondon Heathrow, England. That occasion was the first visit by Concorde to Barbados.[74]
The Concorde Experience closed on 1 July 2018 and in November 2024 the hangar was repurposed into a new departures terminal for air-sea passengers.
"Our thrust is to take the number of cruise passengers from 700,000 to 1.2 million per year. A significant percentage of these will be part of the Air/Sea and Stay/Cruise programs. Existing facilities at GAIA are already stressed to handle passenger volumes during the 12 to 4 pm period. The new focus of developing the air/sea program will necessitate a suitable review of the airport plant and no doubt this will be addressed in by the master plan," he said.
President of the Airlines Association of Barbados, John White says the lounge was refurbished at a cost of 1.7 million Barbados dollars and sits on five thousand square feet of space. He says when completed the lounge will cater to 200 passengers flying first and business class. The lounge has internet connection, PCs , fax machines scanners copying machines full range of drinks and snacks for guests.
The airport CEO noted the level of transfer passengers through Grantley Adams had risen by 58 per cent.
HOUSTON – An elderly Cuban exile who once worked for the C.I.A. and has been linked to bombings in Havana and the downing of an airliner in the 1970s is scheduled to go on trial this week in a Texas courtroom – not on terrorism charges, but for perjury.
THIRTY-FOUR years ago today, terrorists blew up a Cubana passenger aircraft off Barbados, killing all 73 people on board – mostly Cubans, but including 11 Guyanese and five North Koreans – on their way to Havana.
Many of the 560 filings in the case so far remain sealed – not available to the public – including items related to Posada's CIA history and his taped interview with author Ann Louise Bardach. The US Justice Department attorneys had asked for the seals.
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