The US company due to take over support operations at Bermuda’s airport yesterday pledged to retain all 40 staff from outgoing contractor BAS Serco.

Atlanta-based CI² beat BAS Serco, which has held the contract for 20 years and will take over at the end of March next year.

The firm will run air traffic control, weather services, ground electronics and airport maintenance.

CI² founder and president Andrella Kenner, who made a flying visit to Bermuda last week, said: “In our industry, risks are inherent in everything we do.

“It involves understanding, managing and critical thinking to ensure we meet objectives and maintain quality.

“To accomplish this, it takes a dedicated professional workforce which is what defines the CI² Aviation culture.

“I am confident that we already have that team in place in Bermuda.”

The Royal Gazette revealed last week that BAS Serco had lost the contract it had held since 1995.

Airport general manager Aaron Adderley paid tribute to BAS Serco’s work — but said the bid from CI² was “extremely competitive.”

He added that CI² also held offshore air traffic control contacts in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands and had longstanding relationships with the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA).

And Mr Adderley said that CI²’s management of airspace bordering US national airspace was a “strong advantage” because Bermuda’s airspace also runs into US air territory and is at present managed by the FAA.

He added that CI²’s US and international operations also offered extra training and career development opportunities for Bermudian employees.

Ms Kenner said that her company would provide safe and efficient aviation and air navigation to passengers passing through the LF Wade International and to travellers travelling through Bermuda airspace.

She added: “CI² Aviation’s commitment will be to the continued evolution of LF Wade International Airport as it moves into the next generation of airport operations and maintenance services.”

And Ms Kenner said: “The company feels that professionals who have dedicated their careers as air traffic controllers, meteorologists, weather forecasters, ground electronic maintenance providers and airport maintenance services providers play an essential role in the airport’s past as well as its future.”

The award-winning firm, which also has an office in Washington DC, is the only African-American owned company that provides air traffic control services to the Federal government.

CI² also supplies air traffic control and weather observation to a total of 20 air traffic control towers in the US.

And the company said its “most outstanding accomplishment” was more than 20 million aircraft operations and more than 18 years with no fatalities attributed to controller error.