St. Helena was largely cut off from the outside world until 14 October 2017. St. Helena is a beautiful tropical island in the South Atlantic, famous for being the place of exile for the last six years of Napoleon’s life. It is at least 1,100 miles from the nearest continent, and commuting to and from populated areas has long been an inconvenience, and sometimes impossible. But everything changed that happy autumn when the island opened its first working airport. The World’s Most Useful Airport outlines the potential to revolutionize the island’s economy and culture through infrastructure.
Before the airport, tourism in St. Helena was modest at best, as people were eager to visit an isolated place. The arrival of airports has the power to change this dynamic. It can also cut travel time to and from the mainland from six days to six hours.
The road to rejuvenation is bumpy. As the airport goes through an eventful year of construction and ongoing refurbishment, there are many headwinds. The wind shear on the island was disturbing and created unnecessary turbulence upon landing. Several airlines have bid to operate at the airport but have been stalled by logistical issues. After too many mishaps and false starts, the media came to regard it as “the most useless airport in the world”.
In a way, this documentary attempts to restore that gloomy view. Delegates discussed the challenges they encountered in implementing a fully operational airport and the steps they were taking to overcome them. Visitors can take a guided tour of all the halls and offices of the airport. We went through their inner workings in detail, including how they choose an estimated flight time.
The World’s Most Useful Airport demonstrates the many ways an airport can bring hope and prosperity to an island like St. Helena. The airport is critical to opening up the population to the rest of the world, increasing tourism and export revenues, and providing safe and fast transportation in the event of a medical emergency.
Directed by: Sam Denby
