- NMIA’s transformation programme totals $25.8 billion
- MP Paulwell says consultation was inadequate
- Passenger traffic fell 3.6% in first half of 2026
- Runway expansion is the most contested piece
Member of Parliament for Kingston East and Port Royal Phillip Paulwell has raised concerns about inadequate consultation surrounding the runway expansion component of Norman Manley International Airport’s redevelopment, a $25.8 billion, US$161 million transformation programme operator PAC Kingston Airport Limited first unveiled in 2024 and has been executing in phases since, including upgraded arrivals halls, retail expansion and duty-free area growth.
The timing of Paulwell’s objection matters. NMIA handled 850,200 passengers in the first half of 2026, a 3.6 percent decline from the 881,500 recorded over the same period in 2024, attributed largely to reduced arrivals from the United States, Jamaica’s largest source market. A major capital investment programme proceeding through a traffic downturn is not inherently a contradiction, airport operators often build ahead of a recovery rather than in response to one, but it does raise the stakes on the consultation question Paulwell is pressing: a runway expansion undertaken during a passenger slump invites closer scrutiny of who was actually asked about it, and why, than the same project might during a boom.
PACKAL’s broader commercial strategy leans on winning back growth from markets beyond the traditional American gateway. The operator confirmed plans to invite bids for airport-wide retail expansion specifically to capture growing traffic from Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe, an explicit hedge against continued softness from the US. The airport’s passenger experience score has also been rising, from 3.99 in the third quarter of 2025 to 4.02 in the first quarter of 2026 on the Airports Council International’s quality index, evidence the improvement programme is producing measurable results even as the underlying traffic numbers stay soft.
None of that resolves Paulwell’s core objection, which is about process rather than outcome. A capital programme can succeed by every commercial and quality metric PACKAL tracks while still failing the consultation standard a local MP believes residents and stakeholders were owed before runway work began in his own constituency, and it is that gap, between measurable project success and adequate public process, that the airport’s redevelopment has not yet closed.
Follow Jamaica Homes on Youtube @jamaicahomes and Instagram @jamaica_homes and on Facebook @jamaicahomesnews Send us a message or email us at onlinefeedback@jamaica-homes.com or editor@jamaica-homes.com
