Special Administrator Opposes New Airport Terminal Entry Rule
There has been opposition raised about the change in Labasa Airport terminal entry rules for non-passengers.
The change only allows ticket holders (passengers) and cargo shipping agents to enter the airport terminal building. Labasa Town Council special administrator, Doreen Robinson, said the change violated people’s personal space to receive and send off family members or friends in a proper manner.
She labelled the decision as ‘ridiculous and inconsiderate’ considering that visitors to the airport would not have a proper shelter from adverse weather or unbearable heat. She said there was also the public Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) issues at the terminal building.
“The OHS issue relates to the terminal building which opens straight out onto the drive through and car park,” she said.
Labasa Airport operations team leader, Vikesh Naidu, said the decision was made in consideration of the terminal building size and the safety and comfort of passengers.
The airport has seating provisions of up to 60 seats for passengers.
However, non-travelers occupy most seats, affecting their customer service.
Mr Naidu said unnecessary movement of non-passengers at the terminal building limited ticket holders from resting before departure.
“The services offered here is different from those provided at Nausori and Nadi airports where visitors paid fees to park their vehicle,” he said. In response, Ms Robinson agreed that the terminal building was too small, however, it had catered for thousands of customers in the limited space for many years.
“This is a lack of proper forward planning,” she said. Ms Robinson said the presence of passengers at the terminal building should not be an issue of congestion.
“Reschedule flights if necessary, this is a Civil Aviation Authority of Fiji (CAAF) problem, not the general public’s problem to adjust to the new change,” she said.
Mr Naidu said the terminal building had a low raised roof which led to excessive heat faced by customers.
Airport staff have constantly received complaints of baggage changes because of the excessive number of non-travellers at the disembarking area for receivers.
Expansion of the Labasa Airport was also raised during the visit of the Minister for Finance, Biman Prasad. Mr Prasad said the Vanua Levu Tourism Development Project would cater for the upgrade.