Owen Roberts

Owen Roberts Airport's title commemorates the man whose pioneering work laid the foundation for the Islands' progress in air travel and tourism. Owen Roberts was a former RAF Wing Commander. In November 1952 he piloted the first plane to land at Grand Cayman's new airport; less than six months later he and the airline he had founded and fought for (Caribbean International Airways Ltd), crashed on take-off at Palisadoes Airport in Kingston, Jamaica. Roberts was only 40 when he was killed. W/Cdr. Roberts left a wife, Patricia, and two daughters in London. Twelve other people, including six Caymanians were also killed. There was one survivor, Lt. Col. Edward Remington-Hobbs (the brother-in-law of Owen Roberts).

Cayman Airways Celebrates 28 Years of Service

1996 marked Cayman Airways' (CAL) 28th anniversary as the National Flag Carrier of the Cayman Islands. Starting in 1968 the newly formed Cayman Airways, replaced Cayman Brac Airways - which had provided a link between Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. At that time, CAL was 51% owned by the Cayman Islands Government and 49% by LACSA, the national airline of Costa Rica. In 1972, CAL employed a staff of 30 and started flying the Grand Cayman-Miami route. In 1977, the Government purchased the remaining interests in CAL to make it 100% owned by the Cayman Islands Government.

Our Humble Beginnings

The first attempt to give Cayman an air service began in November 1946, when an American named King Parker, who had been ferrying bombers across the Atlantic during the war, started the Cayman Islands Airways Ltd., in which a number of local people invested in 10 shilling shares. For about 14 months - at first with a Stranderry, a civil version of the Stranraer biplane flying boat, and later with a Catalina called 'Santa Maria' - the company operated a service between the North Sound in Grand Cayman and Tampa, Florida. Prelude to the five-hour flight was a five-minute boat ride out to a mooring in the North Sound.

Please Note

The departure tax of CI$8.00 or US$10.00 (per person) collected at the Cayman Airways ticket counter when you leave the Island, is NOT a fee levied by Cayman Airways, but by the Cayman Islands Government. Any comments or suggestions regarding Cayman Airways may be directed to their Public Relations Officer, P.O. Box 1101, George Town, Grand Cayman, B.W.I. or by telephone: (345) 949-8200.

(Figures include airlines serving the Cayman Route)

USA........................263,049

Canada.................... 14,216

United Kingdom ....21,642

Europe .......................8,907

Japan .........................1,269

Jamaica ....................21,238

Other Caribbean ......3,357

Rest of World ..........7,813

TOTAL: ................341,491

It is interesting to note that in 1970 passengers arriving by air totaled a mere 22,891. (Courtesy of the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism).