The airline industry's projections anticipate moving 200 million passengers in the Caribbean and Latin America this year; that number is expected to more than double to 550 million within 20 years, and at least one regional official is concerned that both infrastructure and regulation in the region are insufficient to take on the mammoth task ahead.
Speaking at the opening of the 2014 Latin America and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) Airline Leaders Forum hosted by Bahamasair, ALTA President Andres Conesa stressed the importance of aviation in the region and warned that redevelopment steps need to be taken as annual passenger numbers swell. In his view, Latin America and the Caribbean continue to suffer from a "huge lack" of investment in aviation infrastructure.
"We have projections to move close to 200 million passengers in the region this year. It's huge and it's growing, but because of this we face challenges related to infrastructure [and] regulation," said Conesa.
ALTA Executive Director Eduardo Iglesias noted that the 20-year forecast projects that this number will explode to some 550 million passengers, which raises significant concerns over the region's ability to transport and process air passengers.
"We have a huge lack of infrastructure investment in Latin America and the Caribbean, and if we are not able to maximize the benefit and the value of the current installed infrastructure, we will not be able to make it.
"We're not only talking about airports. We're talking about air traffic control, customs processes and immigration issues," stated Iglesias.
The annual conference, which brings together 43 member airlines throughout the region, will focus on sharing best practices for customs and infrastructural concerns, among other lingering issues within the region.
Regarding streamlining the customs process between regional countries, Iglesias touched on the importance of new technologies, including automated passport control (APC) kiosks.
The warning follows the Nassau Airport Development Company's (NADC) announcement that it will install 20 APC kiosks in Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) by February 2015 as a preparatory step for the influx of visitors expected after Baha Mar opens in early 2015.

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