The visiting officials were welcomed by Commonwealth Ports Authority board members and other officials last night during a dinner reception at an undisclosed venue.
The FAA officials — Mark McClardy, George Aiken and Steve May — will meet with Gov. Benigno R. Fitial today.
The visitors want to look into the “critical issues” at the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport and the concerns raised by the FAA’s regional administrator for the Western-Pacific region, Bill Withycombe, in his letter to the governor on July 21.
The administration has yet to respond to the FAA letter, Variety learned.
Withycombe, in his letter, said the “frequent commercial blackouts” at the airport are raising “serious concerns” regarding the safe operation and maintenance of the airport as well as associated FAA facilities and services.
CPA is a recipient of millions of dollars in FAA grants.
Withycombe reminded the CNMI government about its agreement with the federal government in operating the international airport.
The visiting FAA officials want to see the Saipan airport’s financial audit as well as the status of its indenture bond agreement.
The governor declared a state of emergency for CPA in May, citing the agency’s failure to comply with the airport bond indenture agreement.
He lifted the emergency declaration on Sept. 3 after swearing in the new members of the CPA board.
The FAA officials are also scheduled to meet with the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. to inquire abut the power situation on island and how it affects the airport.
There have been flights that were delayed due to the power failures at the airport especially during nighttime.
CPA has two generators but both have broken down and need to be repaired.
On Tuesday, the FAA officials will head to Guam but will come back to Saipan on Wednesday to tour its airport area and training facilities. They will also inspect the runway in the evening.
CPA Chairman Joe Lifoifoi yesterday said “power problems and safety of passengers” at the airport are the main concerns of the FAA.
He said the officials want to hear an “assurance” from CUC and the CNMI government that they will prioritize the power needed for the airport’s operations.
“The CPA board and the management will assure [the FAA] that we will continue going to the right direction,” Lifoifoi said.
According to the former House speaker, “If there’s a need to ask the governor to have one Aggreko generator installed at our airport…we will do so just to make sure that we comply with the standards and requirements of the FAA.”
CUC is renting Aggreko’s generators for $6 million for 12 months.
