Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | BVIAA | ||||||||||
| Serves |  British Virgin Islands | ||||||||||
| Location | Beef Island | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 16 ft / 5 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 18°26′44″N064°32′35″W / 18.44556°N 64.54306°W /18.44556; -64.54306 | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  EIS Location in the British Virgin Islands | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Source:DAFIF[1] | |||||||||||
Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport (IATA:EIS,ICAO:TUPJ), previously known asBeef Island Airport, is the main airport serving theBritish Virgin Islands, aBritish overseas territory in theCaribbean. The airport serves as the gateway to just about all of the islands within the BVI. The airport is also a gateway for inter-Caribbean travelers headed to the nearbyU.S. Virgin Islands. Many travellers fly intoBeef Island, with the intention of taking a ferry to the other smaller British Virgin Islands. The airport is located onBeef Island, a small island off the main island ofTortola, to which it is connected by theQueen Elizabeth II Bridge.
The Terrance B. Lettsome airport underwent a major $55 million renovation in 2004. After dredging was completed, the runway was expanded to allow larger planes to operate into the airfield. This renovation was the largest capital project ever undertaken in the territory at that time.
Some of the highlights of the renovation and expansion project include:
There is a $20 departure tax for anyone over the age of five years.
The airport houses the BVI Outstation of theEastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority.[2]
In 2016 the Government announced an expansion of the airport to increase the runway size by 2,504 feet (763 m).[3][4] This followed years of speculation and proposals; discussions about expansion and how to finance it were being undertaken in 2014.[5][6] Although initial reports indicated that the United Kingdom had approved the necessary financial borrowing,[7] later reports suggested that the UK's consent had been withheld in connection with concerns about the financial viability of the project.[8] Under agreed financial protocols, external borrowing by the BVI Government needs to be approved by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
On 27 December 2016 the Government announced that the tender to expand the airport had been won byChina Communications Construction Company.[9] The Premier,Orlando Smith, said "Negotiations will now get underway with the preferred bidder with a view to concluding a contractual agreement within three months, which delivers the right outcome for the people of this territory."[9] According to Government, the runway was proposed to be extended from 4,645 feet (1,416 m) to approximately 7,100 feet (2,164 m), and would thereby allow mainline jetliner types such asBoeing 737-800 andAirbus A320 aircraft to fly directly to and from the continental United States and Latin America.
However, in June 2017 the Government appeared to confirm that the proposed runway expansion would not be going forward.[10]
In 2019, aTitan Airways-operatedAirbus A318-100 jet landed at the airport, which is the largest aircraft ever operated into the airport.[11]
Historically, in 1986 the airport had scheduled passenger jet service operated byBritish Caribbean Airways,[18] with direct flights toMiami. British Caribbean operated aBritish AerospaceBAe 146-100 jetliner. This was only jet service operated into Tortola at that time.
Thirty years after the short-livedBritish Caribbean Airways offered jet service toMiami utilizingBritish AerospaceBAe 146-100 aircraft, Tortola-basedBVI Airways announced the start of new nonstopMiami service usingAvro RJ100 jet airliners with this aircraft being a later version of the Bae 146 jet. However the new service never flew, and BVI Airways is now presumed to be defunct[19] having laid off all of its staff shortly beforeHurricane Irma stuck in 2017.[20]
American Airlines began nonstop jet service between Tortola and Miami in June 2023 with flights operated byAmerican EagleEmbraer 175 regional jets.[21] The service began with a single daily seasonal flight, but has grown to several daily frequencies that operate year-round.[22]
Air BVI was an airline based at the airport which operated scheduled passenger service from the early the 1970s to the mid 1990s withBritten-Norman BN-2 Islander andDouglas DC-3 prop aircraft as well as withHawker Siddeley HS 748 turboprops during its existence. The regional air carrier servedAnegada,Antigua,La Romana, Dominican Republic,St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands,San Juan andVirgin Gorda besides Tortola and also operated a small hub at the airport.
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| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Air Cargo Carriers | Dominica–Douglas-Charles,San Juan |
| DHL Aviation | Saint Barthelemy |
| FedEx Feeder | San Juan |
The controversial bail out deal where a defunct airline that left owing the British Virgin Islands Airports Authority (BVIAA) close to US$100,000 is in the news again. The National Democratic Party (NDP) Government pumped some $7M of tax payers monies into the defunct BVI Airways, with a promise for direct flights between Miami, Florida, USA and the Terrence B. Lettsome International Airport at Beef Island. The public has been given three start dates for when the first flight was to commence; at the end of October 2016, the other end of November 2016 and the final December 2016. To date none of the dates have come to pass and the public, the media and the Opposition remain skeptical about the Government's investment on the taxpayers back.
