Authorities are out to frustrate air hackers as much as possible in hopes of further cracking down on the illegal practice that could very well end in death.
Minister of Tourism and Aviation Dioniso D’Aguilar expressed his views on the matter with reporters yesterday before the weekly cabinet meeting.
This problem which has been a source of contention for a number of years and for successive administrations.
It has been noted though that the current Minnis administration is making strides to bring some kind of resolution to this problem.
Minister D’Aguilar disclosed that the Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority Charles Beneby is close to rolling out regulations in this regard.
“Obviously, you don’t want to completely kill commerce via air, it’s a very important component of our economy.
“While we want to ensure that the traveling public is in planes and piloted by pilots who are properly licensed and have all the necessary qualifications and up to date paperwork, we do want to ensure that everybody is properly licensed before they fly a plane for Bahamians moving within the islands,” he said.
Minister D’Aguilar said he cannot put a figure on the exact number of air hackers in The Bahamas, but there are reports of how many flights a particular plane makes.
Officials stepped up the crackdown on air hackers following last January’s Andros plane crash where everyone on board was killed.