The Petrojam Oil Refinary located on Marcus Garvey Drive in Kingston. -RICARDO MAKYN PHOTO
John Myers, Jnr.
, Staff Reporter
THE CIVIL Aviation Authority (CAA) has placed an immediate ban on flights over the Petrojam Oil Refinery amidst complaints by the petroleum company that low flying aircraft pose a threat to the safety of its operation.
The CAA told The Gleaner yesterday that it had banned all aircraft from flying lower than 1,500 feet above the refinery complex on Marcus Garvey Drive in Kingston.
Aircraft operators who breach the enforcement will be fined $20,000 and could face up to three years in prison.
A flight safety notification has also been despatched to all aircraft operators advising that the area above the refinery is "prohibited airspace."
The CAA said its director-general, Col. Terrence Lewis, was in the process of issuing a directive under Regulation 69 of the Civil Aviation (Air Navigation) Regulations to have the area designated a "prohibitive airspace."
Winston Watson, managing director of Petrojam, in an interview with The Gleaner yesterday, said his company does not want any small aircraft flying over the refinery "just in case there is a problem with the aircraft."
Several of these aircraft operate from the nearby Tinson Pen Aerodrome.
FLYING DANGEROUSLY LOW
Petrojam is especially perturbed by aircraft manned by student pilots. "I do not want to have student pilots flying over the refinery; you never know when something can happen, especially when they take off," he said.
He adds that Petrojam has always asked the CAA to instruct pilots to turn left, instead of right, or take off from Tinson Pen.
There have been instances of small aircraft flying low over the refinery, he said, pointing out that one incident was witnessed by the company's overseas insurers who were on a visit to the plant.
"They did make a big deal about it," he said.
The insurance agents did not threaten to increase the company's insurance premium, he said, but warned instead that the frequency of such incidents would significantly increase the safety risk of the company.
The Government-owned oil refinery, which is insured by several companies in the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe, pays out just under US$1 million for insurance on a yearly basis, said the refinery boss.
