   hewanorra international airport , near vieux fort quarter, saint lucia, in the caribbean, is the larger of the country's two airports, the smaller being george f. l. charles airport, and is managed by the saint lucia air and seaports authority (slaspa). the airport is a fire category 9 airport that handles 500,000 passengers a year and has the capability to handle the boeing 747, airbus a330, airbus a340, boeing 777 and other similar long range intercontinental aircraft. aircraft maintenance there is carried out by caribbean dispatch services. george f. l. charles airport, formerly known as vigie airport, is located in castries and handles inter-caribbean scheduled passenger flights which are currently operated with turboprop and prop aircraft from this smaller airfield. == history ==  hewanorra international airport was originally named beane army airfield and was used as a military airfield by the united states army air forces sixth air force and used in world war ii. beane field was activated in early 1941 with a mission to defend saint lucia against an enemy attack. the former usaf base was then refurbished and converted into a commercial airport. there is a disused northeast/southwest runway north of the main east-west runway that was part of the military airfield. it is in poor condition, along with a few dispersals. == expansion == a major aspect of the proposed redevelopment has never been in doubt. a new terminal building is still on cards. such a facility is crucial to the airport's infrastructure to ensure it remains vibrant and efficient gateway to saint lucia. the island's tourism market forecasts that some 800,000 passengers could pass through the airport annually by 2017, a near doubling of today's throughput. the construction of a separa
Airports_in_Saint_Lucia