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16-489: The building of the airport — designed to replace the obsolete Pearls Airport on the north side of the island — was cited by U.S. President Ronald Reagan as evidence that the Grenadian government intended to allow it to be used as a way point for Soviet military aircraft en route to Cuba. He buttressed this claim with the evidence that it was being built, in part, by Cuban workers. Bishop and his government contended that

32-562: A 70% stake in the company and has been responsible for the leasing of the new Embraer E145s that are being used for the initial routes of the airline. Air Peace and the Government of Antigua and Barbuda invested USD$ 65 million and USD $ 20 million respectively. The airline received the first two of the new Embraer E145s in April 2024 and announced that flights would start within weeks. At the time, inter-island connections were prioritized with

48-399: A Caribbean airport is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Grenada location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Leeward Islands Air Transport LIAT 2020 Limited , operating as LIAT20 , or simply LIAT , is an airline of Antigua and Barbuda . The company was preceded by LIAT (1974) , and commenced operations on 6 August 2024. LIAT20

64-502: A violent coup in which Prime Minister Maurice Bishop was killed. The American justification for the invasion was the perceived threat to American medical students at St. George's University , whose campus is a short distance from the airport. At dawn on Oct. 25, 1983, more than 500 Rangers from the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the United States Army 75th Ranger Regiment conducted a risky, low-altitude parachute assault onto

80-717: Is a 30/70 venture between the Government of Antigua and Barbuda and Air Peace , and its fleet has been inherited from LIAT (1974) and the latter. The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic led to the liquidation of LIAT (1974) after many unsuccessful months. The company officially ceased operations on January 24, 2024 and laid off more than 90 employees. LIAT20 was incorporated in Antigua and Barbuda in July 2020, in collaboration with private Nigerian airline Air Peace. Air Peace holds

96-655: The British Government to protect British West Indian Airways . This meant the airport was not in daily operation. Pearls was used by the Allies for military aircraft during World War II . After the war, the airport reverted to civilian operation and the runway was extended and paved to its final length. The airport's principal commercial carrier was Leeward Islands Air Transport (LIAT), which linked Grenada to nearby islands with its 48-passenger turboprop aircraft. The airport's surrounding hills and its distance from

112-458: The Government looking to revise previous routes of LIAT (1974) such as those to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was also announced that a larger Embraer E195-E2 would be acquired in the future. The airline commenced operations on August 6, 2024, with the inaugural flight to Castries, Saint Lucia. It was announced that scheduled service would begin 2 weeks later, on August 19, 2024, on

128-687: The Grenada Outstation of the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority . The following airlines serve Grenada: The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Maurice Bishop Airport: Pearls Airport Pearls Airport ( ICAO : TGPG ) was an airport in Grenada in the Caribbean , located at the northeastern corner of the island, 19 miles (31 km) northeast of

144-650: The Point Salines airport was intended to make the island more accessible to European and North American tourists. The long-range jets that carried such tourists could not land on the short and geographically difficult runway at the existing airport, Pearls. As a result, tourists bound for Grenada had to put up with the delays, expenses and perceived risks of changing to smaller planes flown by regional carriers. The Grenadian government said they hoped their tourist trade would dramatically increase if direct flights from Europe and North America were possible. The airport itself

160-487: The capital city of St George's made it unsuitable for further improvements. On 25 October 1983, Marines from the 8th Marine Regiment landed nearby by helicopter and "captured" Pearls Airport during the United States invasion of Grenada , meeting only light resistance. The airport then consisted of a cinder block terminal/operations building and a fuel storage facility. The Marines seized two parked aircraft. One

176-571: The follow-on occupation force. After the invasion, Point Salines International Airport was completed with $ 19 million in American assistance and landed its first commercial passenger plane on Oct. 28, 1984. The airport was renamed for the late Prime Minister in 2009. The airport is at an elevation of 41 ft (12 m) above mean sea level . It has one runway designated 10/28 with an asphalt surface measuring 2,744 m × 45 m (9,003 ft × 148 ft). The airport houses

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192-584: The island. The principal American base was at Point Salines, where a 9,000-foot runway and new terminal was nearing completion. In 1984, Pearls was replaced as Grenada's main airport by the Point Salines International Airport, now called Maurice Bishop International Airport . Pearls is now a construction site and used as a drag racing strip. Both wrecks of the AN-26 and AN-2R sit by the former terminal. This article about

208-562: The main town and capital St George's (12 degrees 09 minutes North, 61 degrees 37 minutes West) with a runway set at a direction 082 degrees/262 degrees and 5,200 feet (1,600 m) long. It was the country's first airport, opened in 1943 and was under the management of the Grenada Airports Authority. Pan American Airways did not operate in the Windward Islands , because of an excluding agreement made by

224-465: The unfinished airport. Despite resistance from Grenadian armed forces (PRA - People's Revolutionary Army) and armed Cuban construction workers, the Rangers secured all of their objectives on the airfield quickly. The seizure of the airfield allowed United States Air Force C-141 transport planes to land, beginning at 2:05 P.M., and unload six battalions of paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division ,

240-527: Was an AN-26 (CU-T1254) Cubana Airlines turboprop which had arrived the day before from Havana with two high-level Cuban officials. The other was an AN-2R (CCCP-71189) biplane, a gift to Grenada from the Soviet Union, ostensibly for agricultural spray. During the ensuing period of hostilities, the Marines used the airfield as a base for offensive operations to complete subjugation of the eastern side of

256-470: Was designed by a Canadian firm and specialized construction contracts were awarded to European contractors. Two private American construction firms also participated in the project. The unfinished airport was chosen as the jump-off point for the invasion of Grenada by the United States in October 1983. The event that precipitated the U.S.-led invasion was not the construction of the airport, but, rather,

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