Sir Barry Bowen’s Name Now on Belize City Municipal Airport

He was lost in a plane crash above the San Pedro Airport in February of 2010. But Sir Barry Bowen probably wouldn’t have minded, considering that he regularly made flights in his personal aeroplane between his residence on Ambergris Caye and the center of his business empire, Belize City, as well as out west to the Cayo District. He established a personal relationship with the rough-hewn airstrip serving the Old Capital. But that was six years ago, and even he might not recognize the completely made over airport now named after him. News Five’s Aaron Humes takes us through a day of personal and national triumph.

Aaron Humes, Reporting

If Sir Barry Bowen were still around to see, as we did this afternoon, the panorama of a City transformed and an airstrip painstakingly and lovingly renovated into a state of the art airport hugging the Caribbean coastline, we suspect he would have been proud to see the finished product of a conversation he had many years ago with a first-time Government Minister from the island he called home.

Manuel Heredia Jr.

Manuel Heredia Jr., Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation

“In my early days, after having taken over the Ministry of Civil Aviation in our first administration, the late Sir Barry Bowen, being a good friend of mine, approached me and said, “Junior,” – because that is what he called me, Junior – “why don’t we try to do something great at the Municipal Airport?” And I said, “Barry, but it’s all about money.” And he would reply, “We can get it done, you know – I can help, either to get it financed or to help you design that.” And the initial concept plan was indeed paid [for] by Sir Barry; he paid for the initial plans for this one and we just expanded on that afterwards.”

His widow, Dixie Bowen, and their children carry on in his memory.

Dixie Bowen

Dixie Bowen, Widow of Sir Barry Bowen

“We are all delighted; we are extremely proud. Every day that we fly in here – whether it is Michael in his airplane or myself in generally Tropic – I will fondly remember my late husband, and the family are very, very proud.”

And while for the Bowen family it is a personal triumph, for Minister Heredia it culminates an extensive Government project dedicated to expanding the services offered by our airports.

Manuel Heredia Jr.

“In 2008, this administration noted the critical importance of our domestic airports to our economy and at that time, began an unprecedented campaign to enhance our local aerodromes across the country. While we have been able to invest substantial resources in our aerodromes, the Belize City Municipal Airport remained a central point of our National Aerodrome Development Strategy. The direct contribution of this Municipal Airport to travel and trade in Belize cannot be overemphasized. Between 2011 and 2015, our travel services at B.A.A.’s aerodromes countrywide; of this total, seven hundred and thirty thousand either landed or departed from this very airport, establishing it as the unrefuted hub for domestic air travel in Belize. This was the main premise for our investment, along with enhancing our compliance with international civil aviation standards. As the Minister in charge of Tourism and Civil Aviation, I am delighted to share with you, that we have exceeded that initial vision, and have indeed made this airport into one of the premier domestic airports in our region.”

Aaron Humes Reporting for News Five.