Developers Of Multistorey Buildings Implored To Consult With JCAA

The Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority (JCAA) is imploring developers of multistorey buildings to seek the requisite approvals prior to erecting these buildings as they may be in breach of civil aviation guidelines.

In an interview with JIS News, Director of Flight Safety at the JCAA, Noel Ellis, said the Authority has observed the emergence of numerous high-rise buildings throughout Jamaica, particularly in Kingston.

Mr. Ellis explained that one misconception that developers may have about the need to reach out to JCAA is the distance from the airport.

“What many persons don’t realise is that even if you perceive that you are far from the airport, any tall building might have an impact on the flying community,” he said.

He pointed out that this is particularly important in terms of lighting and informing pilots of obstruction, and that it is imperative for there to be lights that give warning to a tall building in the area.

The Flight Safety Director emphasised that the JCAA needs to be aware of this development.

“It is needed to inform the aviation community and we need to approve these buildings, so we would invite any developer who is looking at constructing tall buildings over four storeys to get in touch with the JCAA to see what impact this would have on the aviation community, and we will advise them what needs to be done to make it a viable building without affecting aviation,” he said.

Mr. Ellis indicated that failure to abide by these guidelines will have significant repercussions on aircraft.

“It could cause an accident if a pilot isn’t aware of these buildings being in this area,” he said.

“This will affect the kind of approach going into an airport, so it may cause an aircraft to not be able to use a certain part of the runway because of an obstruction, and this will have long-term implications on the use and viability of those airports,” the Flight Safety Director noted.

He added that it is important for these factors to be considered and determine the best course of action for building developers as well as for the aviation community.

Mr. Ellis explained that a building going up in the hills of St. Andrew or even in New Kingston could affect an aircraft that is coming in to the Norman Manley International Airport.

“Many persons don’t realise how close you are to the airport, but also the air route planes fly on. We call it railroads in the skies, so there are specific routes that they fly on to go into an airport or out of an airport. A tall building may be impacting that railway track in the sky,” the Flight Safety Director said.

He said depending on the height of the building and how it will affect the aircraft, it may need to be lit and that one of the determinations that is made when the assessment is done is the type of lights, whether a flashing light or a solid light, the intensity of the light and the colour of the light.

Mr. Ellis also pointed out that there are international standards that guide how to inform a pilot that an obstacle is in his path, “so we would do that assessment and we would make that determination and provide it to the developer and to the town planning authority.