Fly in Comfort and Style: Enjoy the Hawker 800XP Jet from Miami to the Caribbean
November 1, 2025
ST. MAARTEN — Sunday, November 9, 2025 — Princess Juliana International Airport (TNCM/SXM) saw two notable private jet arrivals today — one official and unplanned, the other luxurious and leisurely.
The first was a Belgian Air Force Dassault Falcon 7X (registration OO-FAE), which made an emergency diversion to St. Maarten due to an engine problem. The aircraft was carrying Belgian Minister Maxime Prévot and his delegation when the issue forced the pilots to land safely at SXM. All passengers disembarked without incident, and local airport emergency services responded swiftly upon arrival.
According to Belgian media reports, the incident has sparked renewed debate in Brussels about the reliability of the government’s aging fleet of official aircraft. The Falcon 7X remains parked at SXM Airport pending technical inspection and possible maintenance before it can return to Europe.
Shortly afterward, another eye-catching aircraft touched down — a Gulfstream jet registered N550CK, widely recognized among aviation enthusiasts as belonging to fashion designer Calvin Klein. Unlike the earlier emergency landing, this arrival was purely for pleasure.
Plane spotters at SXM noted that Klein’s aircraft landed around midday before continuing to the nearby island of St. Barths, a favorite Caribbean retreat for celebrities, entrepreneurs, and jetsetters — especially as the Thanksgiving holiday season approaches.
With the high-end private jet season ramping up, the contrasting arrivals — one official, one leisurely — highlight St. Maarten’s growing role as both a strategic diversion airport for international flights and a gateway to the luxury lifestyle of St. Barths.
… and then a Boeing 747 Cargo Jet Lands with Critical Parts for WestJet
Adding an operational-logistics angle: A large cargo freighter — reportedly a wide-body Boeing 747 freighter — landed at SXM earlier today. Its cargo: replacement parts for the grounded WestJet Boeing 737 that suffered a hard-landing/gear-collapse incident at SXM in September.
The cargo aircraft departed at the end of the day, leaving its shipment behind. The arrival underscores the urgency of getting the WestJet jet back into service, and highlights SXM’s role not just in leisure flights and in emergency diversion, but also in complex aviation logistics and recovery support.
