One of world's most remote islands gets commercial flights

Johannesburg, Oct 14 (AP) One of the world's most remoteplaces became a little less isolated today, when the firstcommercial flight departed for St...
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Johannesburg, Oct 14 (AP) One of the world's most remoteplaces became a little less isolated today, when the firstcommercial flight departed for St Helena, a South-Atlanticisland that until recently was only accessible by boat andwhere Napoleon Bonaparte spent his last years in exile.

The SA Airlink plane left Johannesburg on a six-hourjourney to the British-ruled territory, which hopes to drawmore tourists to the deposed French emperor's final abode,Longwood House, as well as rugged landscapes, marine life andthe novelty of visiting a spot far off the beaten track.

The new weekly air service brings an end to what had beenthe only regular way to reach the island. The royal mail shipSt Helena, which takes nearly a week to arrive from Cape Town,will stop its voyages in February.

"St Helena, where you are a long way from a long way,"tweeted Lisa Phillips, the first female governor of St Helenaand two other Atlantic islands, Ascension and Tristan daCunha.

Phillips' social media posts have highlighted some of thevolcanic island's quirkier fixtures, including a gianttortoise named Jonathan that is said to be 185 years old andJacob's Ladder, a 699-step outdoor staircase leading from avalley to a hilltop in Jamestown, the capital.

The story of how air travel to St Helena came about isalso, well, unusual.

The official opening of the St Helena airport, built onthe island's Prosperous Bay Plain for about USD 380 million ofBritish taxpayers' money, was supposed to happen in May 2016.

But a Comair Boeing 737 test flight at the airportencountered severe wind shear, a phenomenon referring to aquick change in wind speed or direction, or both. Thatrompted harsh criticism of the British government in aparliamentary report that said the failure to foresee thedifficult weather conditions was "staggering".

Larger aircraft can land at the airport but with weightrestrictions, meaning fewer passengers. SA Airlink's smallerEmbraer E190 is carrying nearly 80 passengers, including"Saints", the nickname for people from St Helena, touroperators from South Africa and journalists. The flight fromJohannesburg includes a stop in Windhoek, the Namibiancapital.

The SA Airlink plane conducted 13 flight trials at the StHelena airport in August, according to a statement by islandauthorities. Some charter and medical evacuation flights haveused the airport in the past year.

Tourism would bring a much-needed boost to St Helena,which lies about 1,930 kilometers (1,200 miles) west of theborder between Angola and Namibia, the nearest mainland.

The island's biggest industry was once growing flax forthe manufacture of rope, but St Helena's population of morethan 4,000 people is now heavily dependent on Britishgovernment support.

Published in December, the British parliamentary reportthat criticised the handling of the airport said significanttourism growth is needed for the island to become economicallyself-sufficient and that a local entity promoting development"has some way to go to improve the marketing for the island'slocation and attractions".

Discovered by Portuguese mariners in 1502, St Helena wasa way station for ships for centuries and was a key port forBritain's East India Company. It was also an ideal spot forthe British to keep prisoners, including a Zulu prince and hisretinue, thousands of Boer prisoners from South Africa'sconflict near the beginning of the 20th century and, ofcourse, Napoleon.

First exiled to the Mediterranean island of Elba, heescaped, met defeat at the battle of Waterloo and was sent tofar more remote St Helena in 1815. He died there in 1821 andhis body was later exhumed and entombed at Les Invalides inParis.

Though empty, his grave on St Helena is a populardestination for visitors. (AP) HMBMRJ.

This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.

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