Vernice Walkine, President & Chief Executive Officer, Nassau Airport Development Company, Bahamas

Speaker Biograghy: Vernice had a fulfilling career with the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, where she moved through the ranks of the organisation over the course of 31 years. Her responsibilities included marketing, product development and global sales. In 2005 she was appointed to the top position of Director General, a first for a female. In this role she achieved a significant first for the country: five million annual visitors. In 2010 she demitted office to take a position with the Nassau Airport Development Company, the operator of Lynden Pindling International Airport, as VP of Marketing, the first Bahamian executive of the company. The airport was undergoing massive redevelopment. She became the President and CEO in 2013, and has been highly focused on improving the passenger experience at Nassau Airport, through quality concessions, entertainment activities and efficient systems and processes.


Day 3 - 17 March
Session:
Aviation & Border Security, Control & Facilitation


10:05 - 10:55 - PANEL DISCUSSION: US pre-clearance on the world stage
Synopsis: Panel Chair: Stanis Smith, Executive Vice President, Stantec, CANADA A pre-clearance facility is a US Port of Entry located at an airport in another country. Airports with pre-clearance can enable airlines to fly into any US airport. Until recently, pre-clearance was only available to Canadian and Caribbean Airports, but in 2015 the USA announced its intention to expand US pre-clearance around the world. This session will provide a balanced perspective of the benefits and challenges involved in implementing pre-clearance in an airport. The panelists will include US CBP (Customs and Border Protection), the CEO of an international airport that has pre-clearance, and consultants who have designed pre-clearance operations. Each panellist will make a short presentation, followed by discussion. Randy Howe: What is pre-clearance, in simple terms? What are the intentions of the US Government for roll-out of the Pre-clearance Program? How do airports apply for pre-clearance? What key things do airports and their consultants need to know about pre-clearance? Vernice Walkine: Brief description of Nassau Airport and the new pre-clearance facility, How has the new US pre-clearance facility enhanced the capacity and passenger experience at Nassau? Regarding the pre-clearance facility, what challenges have there been (either during design or in operation) and how have these been overcome? What recommendations do you have for other airports intending to incorporate pre-clearance? Pat Neville: Brief description of Pearson, and the recent changes made to pre-clearance at Pearson, How has the new US pre-clearance facility enhanced the capacity and passenger experience at Pearson? Regarding the pre-clearance facility, what challenges have there been (either during design or in operation) and if so, how have these been overcome? What recommendations do you have for other airports intending to incorporate pre-clearance? Stanis Smith: Brief presentation of the pre-clearance manual, brief presentation of design challenges associated with pre-clearance, brief presentation of how these design challenges have been overcome.

Audience will learn: