There are two airports on the tiny island nation of Grenada? Yes…..and no. Haha. There are two airports on the island, but Maurice Bishop International Airport is the only active one. It replaced the original, called Pearls Airport, in 1984. Located in the north east part of the island, Pearls Airport was built in 1943.
The building of the much, much larger Maurice Bishop International Airport is one of the main reasons the US invaded Grenada on October 25, 1983. The US claimed the airport was built to be a Cuban military airport. When Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and his cabinet was assassinated it brought the issue to the forefront. During the invasion the 1st Battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment captured the larger airport while the 8th Marine Regiment captured Pearls Airport meeting only light resistance.
Now a days the mile long runway is used for drag racing and go karts. A visit to the old airport is one of Cutty’s stops on his day long tour of the island and is well worth the time. On the tarmac you will still find Prime Minister Bishop’s private plane and a Cuban airliner sitting in the same spot for the last 36 years just rusting away. Both are fascinating to climb into and on top of.
Let’s continue the tour I did with my Dad when he came down to the boat. Cutty, please continue. 🙂
Shane
Just ran into your piece and I have a correction for you. The Antonov 2 was not Maurice’s private plane as you state. It was intended to be a crop duster for the banana industry which was then a major foreign exchange earner for Grenada and other Windward Islands . It arrived in Grenada not long before the invasion. The AN-24 was a Cubana airline that happened to be on the ground at the time that the Americans invaded. They disabled it and it has remained there ever since.