Guyana, Panama mull one-stop security initiative for air travel

Guyana and Panama have concluded a productive two-day engagement centered on strengthening security cooperation within the context of air travel between the two nations. The discussions, held at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), addressed the implementation of a comprehensive one-stop security program, a recognized best practice in aviation.

This initiative aims to eliminate the requirement for transfer passengers and their checked baggage originating from Guyana to undergo re-screening at Panama International Airport after initial screening at CJIA.

The meeting brought together key stakeholders, including representatives from the Cheddi Jagan International Airport Corporation (CJIAC), the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), the Panama Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA), and the local representative of COPA Airlines. The primary objective was to conduct a rigorous evaluation of current security protocols and identify areas for enhanced collaboration.

Manmohan Balram, CJIAC’s Security Director, stated, “𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐧𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐆𝐮𝐲𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐚.” 𝐁𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬, 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬.”

The proposed one-stop security program will enable passengers connecting to onward flights to bypass supplementary security checks in Panama. Panama is considering a unilateral recognition of Guyana’s aviation security measures to facilitate this program, allowing flights from Guyana to proceed without additional screening at Tocumen International Airport.

A comprehensive security assessment was conducted to support the implementation of this program. Following the evaluation, it was confirmed that Guyana’s security procedures comply with the established security protocols of the Panama Civil Aviation Authority.