By Yunus S Saliu
As winter tourist season resumed in destination Gambia some families and friends that visited the Banjul International Airport to pick-up/receive or say farewell to their loved ones lamenting on lack of FIDS and the stuffy condition of the airport terminal – concourse.
The airport terminal serves as a point whereby people wait to disembark when seeing off their loved ones that are travelling out of the country and it is still the same point that many wait to receive/pick-up families, friends and visitors/tourists to destination Gambia.
On different visits to the Banjul International Airport, most of these visitors complained about the heat situation experienced as they are waiting in the terminal.
Receiving one of the TUI Airline flights which flew direct from Gatwick to Banjul one of the Fridays, Sang Mendy one among lots said “this waiting hall is extremely hot.”
He explained that it was his second time of coming to the airport same day, “I was here in the afternoon to pick some guests and now I’m back here this evening to pick-up other of my guests coming from UK via TUI airline, but it is really hot here.”
Expressing his mind, Mr Mendy lamented on huge amounts of money spent on renovation of the airport saying “when I heard that this place is renovated with huge sum of money, I thought it is going to be more comfortable than this with installation of air conditioners just like other international airports. So that people seeing off or waiting for their guests can wait comfortably without experience any inconvenience.”
He observed further “it is about 8pm local time, just take a look at everyone in this hall as they are using hand fans or their hands to fan themselves, imagine how uncomfortable it is for small child.”
Whatever be the case “GCAA can still do better than this,” he added.
Among other complainants, Mr Taal was very unhappy about the hall saying “I have not been around the airport since the emerged of the Coronavirus pandemic last year but with lots of money that we heard to have spent to renovate this airport, it did not match with users expectations.”
From his observation, he said “even the painting of this hall is not professionally done, look at the paint splashes on glasses (pointing to apex rounded glasses in the concourse). Beside that you can see the glasses not sparkling but looking unclean because of the dust on them.”
However, Mr Taal said the only changes he can noticed in the terminal is the removal of the ex-president Jammeh pictures that “were flying (drawing) at top area of this building before.”
Sincerely, “I expected this place to be fixed with air cold (air conditioners) working 24hours to keep people cool instead of it being stuffy as this. Also there is no Flight Information Display System (FIDS) to inform people about the flights condition as regarding incoming or dispatching flights, delayed or cancelled flights.”
He appealed to the GCAA management that “if they cannot install air conditioners here because of best reason to them, let them please install fans to avoid been sweating as this and also the FIDS.”
Hidy Bone who came in through Dakar to receive her guests at the airport said she has been to many international airports across the world but “this airport can still improve to make it more comfortable for its customers and users.”
