Caribbean news. ATLANTA, Georgia: Yesterday, the 15-member Atlanta City Council unanimously approved Mayor Kasim Reed’s appointment of Antiguan Miguel Southwell as general manager of the world’s busiest passenger airport, Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport, which served 94.4 million passengers in 2013 and is crucial to the economic health of southeastern US.
Rated the most efficient airport in the world, delays in Atlanta can have a ripple effect across the entire US. Southwell, 58, was born in English Harbour, Antigua. He is a graduate of Cobbs Cross Elementary School and the Antigua Grammar School. He started his aviation career in Antigua where, in 1974, he worked for LIAT in its airport operations and later for BWIA, now Caribbean Airways. He also served on LIAT’s board of directors from 2006 to 2007.
In his new position, Southwell will oversee an annual operating budget of approximately US$500 million. He holds a bachelor’s degree in management from Portland State University and a master’s degree in international business from City University of New York’s Baruch College.
In June 2013, Southwell returned to Atlanta as deputy aviation general manager after a 12-year tenure as the deputy aviation director of Miami-Dade County’s five-airport system, among them Miami International Airport. Article courtesy Jamaica Gleaner
