L'Espérance Airport
| L'Espérance Airport Grand Case Airport Aérodrome de Grand-Case Espérance | |||||||||||
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| IATA: SFG – ICAO: TFFG | |||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Operator | Mairie de Saint-Martin | ||||||||||
| Serves | Saint-Martin | ||||||||||
| Location | Grand-Case | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 20 ft / 6 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 18°06′02″N 063°02′56″W / 18.10056°N 63.04889°WCoordinates: 18°06′02″N 063°02′56″W / 18.10056°N 63.04889°W | ||||||||||
| Website | saintmartin-airport.com | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  TFFG Location in Saint-Martin | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2014) | |||||||||||
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L'Espérance Airport[3][4] (IATA: SFG[2], ICAO: TFFG[1]), also known as Grand Case Airport (French: Aérodrome de Grand-Case Espérance), is a public use airport located in Grand Case, on the French side (Saint Martin) of the Caribbean island of Saint Martin. The airport is used only for smaller aircraft for regional flights, as Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) on the Dutch side (Sint Maarten) of the island is the larger airport served by all major carriers including to international destinations.
Joint border control with the Kingdom of the Netherlands
In 1994, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and France signed the Franco-Dutch treaty on Saint Martin border controls, which allows for joint Franco-Dutch border controls on so-called "risk flights". After some delay, the treaty was ratified in November 2006 in the Netherlands, and subsequently entered into force on 1 August 2007. Though the treaty is now in force, its provisions are not yet implemented as the working group specified in the treaty is not yet installed.
Tower
Since official opening of the new control-tower PJIA Air Traffic Controllers have two radar systems at their disposal with a range of 50 nautical miles (93 km; 58 mi) and 250 NM (460 km; 290 mi). PJIA air traffic control manages 4,000 sq nmi (14,000 km2; 5,300 sq mi) of airspace around the airport. Besides providing approach, tower and ground control at PJIA, Juliana air traffic services also provides approach control for Wallblake Airport (Anguilla), L'Esperance Airport (St Martin, French West Indies), Gustaf III Airport (St. Barths, French West Indies), F.D. Roosevelt Airport (St. Eustatius, Netherlands Antilles) and Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport (Saba, Netherlands Antilles).
Runway and facilities
Incoming aircraft approach the island on short final for runway 12 over the bay of Grand-Case, which is a tremendous view, on final approach. When wind direction changes, which is common, incoming airplanes approach the island on short final for runway 30, which is the opposite direction.
Larger aircraft such as the ATR 72-500 powerback after lining up on the runway for departure, due to the short runway.
The regional Esperance Airport at Grand Case allows the quickest transfers for commercial inter-island aircraft and for private aircraft. Operators are required to give a 24-hour notice to the Airport Authorities before landing.
Airlines and destinations
The following commercial airlines provide scheduled passenger service:[3]
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Air Antilles Express | Pointe-à-Pitre |
| Air Caraïbes | Pointe-à-Pitre |
| St Barth Commuter | Saint Barthélemy |
| Trans Anguilla Airways | Charter: Anguilla |
References
- 1 2 TFFG – Saint Martin Grand Case. AIP from French Service d'information aéronautique, effective 10 November 2016.
- 1 2 "Airline and Airport Code Search". IATA. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- 1 2 St-Martin.org (official tourism website) - L'Espérance Airport, Grand Case
- ↑ StBarthCommuter.com - L'Espérance Airport, Grand Case (SFG)