Then President Trump’s special envoy to Greenland, Governor Jeff Landry of Louisiana, arrived in Nuuk last week in an American C-40 government plane, there were no representatives from official Greenland to receive him.
Naturally enough, because Landry was not invited by Naalakkersuisut, but on a private trip for Trump to Greenland – allegedly to participate in the Future Greenland conference.
Then President Trump’s special envoy to Greenland, Governor Jeff Landry of Louisiana, arrived in Nuuk last week in an American C-40 government plane, there were no representatives from official Greenland to receive him.
Naturally enough, because Landry was not invited by Naalakkersuisut, but on a private trip for Trump to Greenland – allegedly to participate in the Future Greenland conference.
Nevertheless, the reception after landing was quite statesmanlike and different from usual for the other business people who attended the conference.
Received on the forecourt
Out on the forecourt in front of the terminal building, Landry was received by three cars from the American consulate in Nuuk. Consulate staff took care of the governor’s luggage with Maga caps and chocolate coins stowed in the cars. The cortege then drove out of the airport bypassing the normal passport and customs control.
Now there are probably many in Greenland who dream of arriving in Nuuk without having to wait at the baggage belt and customs, so Sermitsiaq has asked Greenland Airports what it takes to achieve this privilege.
We would like to know who can get this special permit to drive on the forecourt, requirements for drivers, safety approvals and also a little about in which cases the permit is granted and how long the processing time is.
The airport does not respond to security questions
In short, the airport company does not want to answer the question with reference to security.
Greenland Airport’s communications manager Stine Buur Hvistendal writes in an email:
“Nuuk Airport handles many different types of flights every year, including scheduled flights, official flights, government flights, charter flights and private flights. Greenland Airports’ role is to ensure that the airport’s rules, safety requirements and official requirements are complied with in connection with arrival and departure.
Access to the airport’s security area, including the apron, is regulated by applicable security regulations. In various situations, access to external vehicles and people can be granted when this is done in accordance with applicable procedures, necessary safety requirements and applicable regulations. Examples could be health preparedness, authority tasks, service functions or handling of aircraft without the need for terminal facilities.
When people or vehicles must have access to the security area, this takes place according to the procedures and checks that apply to the specific situation. For reasons of airport security, Greenland Airports does not provide further details about specific security procedures, access conditions or operational security measures.
For aircraft that do not form part of regular scheduled traffic, persons can be transported directly from the aircraft to the landside without the use of terminal facilities according to applicable procedures. This does not change the fact that relevant authority requirements continue to be complied with.”
The answer from communications manager Hvistendal is completely in line with the answers that Sermitsiaq has previously received when we have tried to shed light on the security conditions at the airport. Among other things, when the billion-dollar airport had to close for international flights for several periods right after opening, following demands from the Swedish Transport Agency, because there were problems with security.
Openness in Billund
Billund Airport, which operates under the same set of regulations as Nuuk Airport, is hardly as barren with information. Billund Airport has detailed instructions on its website for companies that need to drive on the airport’s grounds within the safety zone.
Here you can read, among other things, that the permit requires the vehicle to be approved by the airport and that the driver must complete a theoretical and practical driving course before access by vehicle within Billund Airport’s restricted area (Airside) can be permitted. The theoretical part of the driving course is completed online – and the practical part is completed by the airport marshals (the airport employees who check the runway and direct planes into place.
After we read the instructions from Billund, we returned to Stine Buur Hvistendal. If Billund can do it, Nuuk Airport can too, we thought.
So we would like to know who and how many have a similar permit in Nuuk – and we would also like to know how long the processing time is for an application, so that we can prepare it before the next time we invite guests to Greenland.
We didn’t get much wiser from that.
“When people or vehicles must have access to the security area, this takes place according to the procedures and checks that apply to the specific situation. For reasons of airport security, Greenland Airports does not provide further details about specific security procedures, access conditions or operational security measures”, repeats Stine Buur Hvistendal by email.
