By Pablo Garcia

For the 9th year the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Aviation has hosted the annual Familiarization Trip (FAM trip) to the Islands of the Bahamas. The goal of this trip is to educate individuals on how easy it is for private pilots to fly their aircraft to and around the islands. The 2011 FAM trip included flights to Nassau, North Eleuthera and Bimini.

We started on Thursday August 18th with a briefing at Banyan’s Sabal Palm Conference room.  Greg Rolle introduced all of the participants to the ambassadors and support staff from the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism. We also discussed the requirements, itinerary and all other information pertinent to the trip.

Upon reaching Nassau International Airport, some of us had to hold in the air due to bad weather conditions at the destination, but after a brief moment we were able to land safely at the Capitol’s Airport.

We enjoyed lunch with the local authorities of the Civil Aviation Department and the Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism.  They gave presentations about the many activities and improvements the local government has accomplished to make private flying to and from the Bahamas as smooth as possible.

Since weather conditions deteriorated, arrangements were made for us to stay in Nassau that night instead of trying to get to Treasure Cay where the airport was closed due to bad weather and low visibility.  We got to enjoy Nassau night life at the Wyndham Resort and enjoyed a night tour in the downtown area.

Attention All Pilots: PARADISE IS LESS THAN AN HOUR!!!! Tropical breezes, palm trees, sugar sand beaches, warm clear waters, friendly folks, fresh sea food, cold beer and of course sweet rum. So easy even an LSA can do it! Check out our website, breezeraircraftusa.com, we’ll make it happen.

The Light Sport Aircraft group departing from Banyan Air Service

Shortly after making our trip over to the Bahamas in September 2010, I learned of the Fly In December 10-12, 2010, organized by the Government of the Bahamas, in conjunction with EAA and was excited to participate. I contacted the organizers, offered my assistance and signed up to participate. Banyan Air Service, one of the sponsors, sent a dozen pilot packages to me which I distributed to interested pilots in our home base area. Our September trip generated a lot of interest and in fact 2 general aviation airplanes from Plant City, Florida flew to Bimini, Bahamas in October partly as a result of our visit, the glowing reports and informing them how easy it was. I offered my second Breezer aircraft to my long time friend Dan Johnson and his wife, Randee. I’ve known Dan since our hang gliding and ultralight days and thought that he and Randee would enjoy this historic trip. Jacob Peed from Aviators Hotline joined me in my airplane. Jacob was very excited about participating and provided the official T shirts for the trip. Aviators Hotline provided shirts for all the participants with the fly-in logo on the back as well as each participant’s aircraft type and N number on the front. We flew to Ft Lauderdale on Thursday afternoon December 9, 2010. Chloe and Bruce from Banyan Air Service were very helpful, arranging everything from fuel to hotel rooms and transportation. They really rolled out the red carpet. There are a lot of really large airplanes who use Banyan services and it was great to be treated so well with our little planes.
Friday morning found most of the pilots attending the pilot briefing at Banyan Air Service hosted by Greg Rolle from the Bahamian government. Greg provided helpful information to the pilots, most of whom were making their first trip to the islands as well as assisting some with eAPIS and other formalities. After some socializing and a group photo we lifted off for the great airborne LSA invasion of Grand Bahamas. The 84 nautical mile trip took less than an hour. The weather was perfect and the island was in sight from 30 miles out. We flew over at 5500 feet; some chose higher altitudes. Upon arrival, the crews of the 17 aircraft were treated to conch fritters and rum punch courtesy of the Bahamian government and the airport authority. We breezed through customs and were whisked off to the Radisson Lucaya Resort where ocean view rooms welcomed us to paradise.
Friday evening the pilots and crews were treated to a reception hosted by Leonard Stuart on the Ministry of Tourism and Aviation and each pilot had the opportunity to express their thoughts and feelings about the trip. Many of us were interviewed by ZNS, the national television station. Afterwards several of us, accompanied by Mr. Stuart, took in the local night life. While out on the town we had the opportunity to meet the Governor General, Sir Arthur Foulkes, Member of Parliament member Ryan Pinder and many other government officials all of whom seemed very interested in our Light Sport Airplanes. It was a real treat to be received so warmly by the people so influential in the Bahamian government. Night life in Freeport, Bahamas is hard to beat. Tropical breezes ruffle palm fronds while live music, native shows, great company and cold island drinks ensures everyone has a good time.
Saturday was spent enjoying all that Grand Bahamas has to offer. For most, this was the first trip to the Bahamas ever, taking the opportunity for sightseeing and enjoying the finest beaches in the world. For me it was an excellent opportunity to relax, taking in the familiar sights, sounds, and ambiance of a place that has come to feel like home. That evening all were invited to join a party hosted by REMOS Aircraft. There was live music, excellent food, and many door prizes. The grand prize was a set of Lightspeed headsets donated by Plane and Pilot magazine. A brief pilots meeting was held to discuss Sunday’s weather. A cold front, the strongest of the season, was meant to arrive in Florida, mid day on Sunday so it was decided on an early start home in the morning.

Flying the Bahamas

Sunday morning, as the fleet headed home, the Breezer gang headed south and east. After arriving at Nassau, Bahamas for a quick fuel stop we proceeded on to one of my favorite places on earth Staniel Cay, Bahamas. Our route of flight took us over the Berry Islands and the Tongue of the Ocean, the very edge of the Bahamas’ Bank. The depth of the water on the banks, 8 to 12 feet plunges to more than 3000 feet in less than a mile making for spectacular color changes when viewed from the air. On a boat, this can make for an interesting ride! Lynn Brown of Odyssey Aviation was once again there to greet us. Lynn took excellent care of us when we were in Nassau back in September. She handled absolutely everything including filing flight plans, not only out bound but also agreed to file returning flight plans to Nassau. Filing flight plans can be difficult from the out islands. She even called the Staniel Cay Yacht Club, the place we planned to stay, to let them know when we were arriving. Nassau is really a class C airport with clearance delivery, ground, tower, and departure control. They have radar service and can be very busy with a wide variety of aircraft. Pilots versed in class C operations will have no trouble operating in and out of Nassau. The controllers are extremely professional and allow for plenty of traffic separation.

We never exceeded 3000 feet on our trip down to the Exumas. Once sighting land, near the notorious Normans Cay we descended to 2000 feet for our flight over the Exuma Park, one of the few national parks in the country. The history and snorkeling here may be the best in the world. Blackbeard, the pirate, and his lot would hide their ships within these islands to prey on passing merchant ships. Poor Jacob had to hear my rambling story about each island that we flew over. Because these waters are protected from commercial fishing and hunting, the native species of fish and coral are probably the way they looked in the 17th century. After clearing the park we headed south and east through Pipe Creek where we descended down to 500 feet. This is where most of the pictures and videos on our website were taken.
Normal protocol for arriving to Staniel Cay is not only to announce our intentions on the radio (frequency 122.8 MHz) but to circle the yacht club so we can get a ride from the airport. Unfortunately the Breezer is one of the quietest planes on earth, so we had to circle a several times. Fortunately, Lynn had phoned ahead, thus they were looking for us. The 3000 foot runway at Staniel Cay, as well as most of the out islands, does not have taxiways so back-taxiing is required. Keep this in mind if you are arriving as a flight of multiple aircraft. Transportation from the airport to the yacht club is via golf cart. In our case multiple golf carts. It is walking distance and all roads lead into town.
The out islands of the Bahamas are among the most magnificent places on earth, but, you need to be somewhat self sufficient. The majority of the runways are going to be crosswind landings at 10 to 15 knots. By and large there are no services; however Light Sport Airplanes use so little fuel so this is not a problem. We brought “claw” tie downs and drove them into the sandstone alongside the paved ramp to secure our airplanes. A word to the wise, most communities in the out islands have runways but do not have fuel so, so never pass a fuel pump.. There is usually a local charter service into these islands if you need service. Island Bird Flying Service, a Rotax IRC, can help you arrange for services in the out islands.
The Staniel Cay Yacht Club has a full service facility for both yachts and planes. The yacht club offers substantial discounts of their services for pilots of private airplanes. They have lovely cottages overlooking the harbor, excellent food, boats, bikes, kayaks, pool, internet, and pretty much everything you need for a stay in the islands. Many of the people you will meet there I consider among my friends.

The weather remained a topic of discussion as a cold front, the strongest of the season, brought freezing temperatures to Miami, Florida, came whistling through Staniel Cay at 4 am on Monday. The wind shift woke me as it had many times before while living on my boat there. The sounds and smells were the same. This time I knew my airplanes was safely tied down. I was in a cottage, at the yacht club, so I rolled over and went back to sleep. I had hoped to take Dan, Randee, and Jacob snorkeling, in some of the most amazing places, but the wind was blowing 30+ miles per hour and it was cold. The highs only reached the lower 70s but with strong winds seemed a lot colder. However, it was still 40 degrees warmer than anywhere in the US. Jacob, who is from the State of Iowa still contrived to develop a suntan. We all met up with my old time friend, Brooks Miller, Counselor (Mayor) of Staniel and had a few Kalik Gold’s (Bahamian beer), he gave my friends a real view of the islands from a local perspective. Brooks invited me to sail with him for the New Year Regatta at Staniel. We were meant to fly home on Tuesday, however we were in a remote island paradise without good communication, and the wind was blowing from the North West.
I tried Flight Service from a BATELCO phone but no joy. So… I called my partner Chris Parker of the Marine Weather Center (mwxc.com) He informed me the winds were going to be Northwest, 25-35 knots at 6000ft . It was clear that we were stuck in paradise for one more day. Tuesday morning we had to change our plans, which meant re-filing eAPIS and in-bound flight plans for Nassau. The Staniel Cay Yacht Club has wireless internet service and via Skype we were able to call Odyssey and talk to Lynn, who re-filed our in-bound flight plans into Nassau. Through the internet connection we were also able to re-file our eAPIS manifests right from the yacht club. Internet service can be a little slow at time thus the flash page for the internet connection at the yacht club offered some tips on how to use the internet in the islands. The flash page suggested, go to the bar and buy a Kalik, start downloading the page. Drink Kalik until the internet seems faster. We were able to re-file from down there. The four of us spent another day enjoying the island before heading home on Wednesday. During the return trip home we dealt with 15 to 20 knot crossing headwinds and was otherwise uneventful, which is good when flying over water. Clearing customs in Nassau proved as easy as on our previous trip and subsequently in the United States also cleared without any problem. Our tour of the Bahamas took us from Ft. Lauderdale to Freeport, Nassau, Staniel Cay, returning to Nassau, then back to Ft. Lauderdale all on 32 gallons of gas. The Breezers landed back home at Plant City as the sun was setting which seemed the perfect ending to such a great trip.
I want to thank the Government of the Bahamas, Greg Rolle, and Leonard Stuart for their efforts to make this event possible. Also special thanks to the event sponsors as well as the individuals assisting us at Banyan Air Service for making this trip such a success. We are planning two Fly-In events to Staniel Cay, one in spring and the other for fall of 2011. There will be more information posted on our web site at a later time. With Breezer, the fun just doesn’t stop. Join us for our next adventure at Breezer Aircraft USA…. Mike Z

Pilots receive a full briefing from Greg Rolle of the Bahamas Tourism office at Banyan Air's superb facility

“Too much fun!” was a common exclamation of my Alaska ultralight friend, Mike Jacober. His signature phrase ran through my head as 18 airplanes, mostly LSA, arrived at the Freeport, Bahamas airport for the first Sport Pilot Fly-in over December 10-12, 2010. *** For many this was their first flight over the ocean (including yours truly). It isn’t far — 85 nautical miles, less than one hour — and it isn’t hard (unless you go for a swim en route… none of us did, thank goodness!). But flying out of sight of land, even for a short time, is rather attention-getting.

*** A number of us gathered at Banyan Air Service at the Fort Lauderdale Executive getting first-class treatment and fuel discounts from this “gateway FBO” to the Bahamas. Bahamas Tourism/Aviation director (and fellow pilot) Greg Rolle gave a thorough presentation of the requirements to fly internationally. Each pilot had to complete lots of government forms but they weren’t too difficult and the great help made it go quickly. Then, we all gathered our resolve, fired up our engines, and took off across the Big Drink. Of course, this is nothing for those few LSAers who have crossed the Atlantic andPacific, but it had me on my toes and I suspect most of us felt similarly.

The Light Sport Aircraft group departing from Banyan Air Service

*** An hour later, we landed one after another at Freeport to a warm reception by Bahamian authorities and tourist office staffers. We breezed through Customs and waiting taxicabs took us to a deluxe resort where we could all revel in our satisfaction of making the ocean-crossing voyage. Jacob Peed of Aviators Hot Line / Light Aviation Edition provided customized tee shirts for all participants with their aircraft name and N-number. Nice idea, Jake! *** Thanks for this great experience go to Randy Hansen and David Oord of EAA who worked with the Bahamas Tourism team to make the Sport Pilot certificate accepted at all airports throughout the islands. All participants have many people to thank but the Bahamas team leaders include Greg Rolle and Leonard Stuart (photo).

You — nor any Bahamian officials — have ever seen this: a row of LSA at the Freeport airport.

*** Continuing Bahamas Fly-ins and other LSA activities are planned and if you get the chance, be sure to take the opportunity. Special thanks to Breezer Aircraft USA boss, Mike Z, who loaned me a Breezer, and who very competently helped me prepare for the flight. Mike’s enterprise plans regular Bahamas fly-outs and you should contact him for advice. He’s a wealth of knowledge, having lived on and sailed throughout the islands for five winters.

Enjoying the night life near Lucaya Resort. Pictured are (R-L): Mike Z, Jacob Peed (kneeling), Bahamas rep Leonard Stuart, Randee Laskewitz, and Dan Johnson.

To read more blogs by Dan Johnson, visit his website at www.bydanjohnson.com.

I was probably the most excited person at AirVenture this year when I heard the news that the government of the Bahamas was going to allow sport pilots to fly over there using a drivers license instead of a medical. I have flown as a sport pilot and sport CFI since 2005 and my flight school is strictly sport aviation. I have logged hundreds of cross country hours flying LSAs all over the US and now I can fly to my favorite place on earth. I set about planning my trip as soon as I returned to Lakeland from Oshkosh. I invited my friend Roger Sherrod and his wife Chady to fly a second Breezer. Roger had flown with me to AirVenture and we’ve flown together a lot at Wallaby Ranch as tug pilots. I was accompanied by my friend Chris Parker of the Caribbean Weather Service. There was much to do We had to get Radio station licenses for the planes as well as radio telephone operators licenses for the pilots, customs user decals, and register with eAPIS for customs manifest filing. Both airplanes were thoroughly inspected as we were going to be flying a long way over water. Ours was not just the 55nm jaunt to Bimini but a trip down to the prettiest place on earth, the Exumas.

The government of the Bahamas works with gateway FBOs to help pilots navigate the formalities at both ends of the trip. We used Banyan Air at Ft Lauderdale Executive (KFXE), who were very helpful making sure that we had our paperwork right and answering last minute questions. We traveled as a flight of 2 and used flight following. Nassau approach separated us for traffic separation. The controllers at Nassau were quite interested in our little planes. Lynn Brown at Odyssey guided us through the customs and immigrations formalities, then helped us with everything from fuel to flight plans and even served us fresh cookies.

We left Nassau for Staniel Cay, Exuma where we spent the next 3 days snorkeling, kayaking, bike riding, and some aerial sightseeing. We captured some amazing pictures and video which can be seen at our website breezeraircraftusa.com. I was barefoot in paradise with an ice cold Kalick a mere 6 1/2 hours after climbing aboard at KPCM including fuel stops and clearing in. Each airplane had consumed less than 25 gallons of gas, I love LSA. Our trip home featured a nice tailwind and so took less time and fuel. Getting set up with eAPIS can be a little frustrating at first till you figure out how it works but, oh boy does it speed up clearing back into the US. The US customs and Immigration folks were really nice and were very interested in our planes too, this actually happened everywhere we went.

This was the best trip I’ve ever taken, I have spent a lot of time on my boat over in the Bahamas and over the years I made a lot of friends over in the out islands. The out islands of the Bahamas are some of the most beautiful places, inhabited by the friendliest people in the world, but can be difficult to reach by commercial transportation. Now with my LSA and a little pre planning these destinations have never been so close. Intend to participate in the LSA fly in on the 10th of December and I hope it will be well attended and it should be because flying to the Bahamas is a Breeze(r)

Story provided by: Michael Zidziunas

by Chloé Foster

By day three, everyone was starting to feel the lack of sleep and constant running.  Everyone met for breakfast at 7:30, and during breakfast Greg Rolle provided another pilot de-briefing to prepare us for the flight to Exuma.  He presented an overview of the day’s activities, including flying to George Town, Exuma and plans for lunch.  By 9:00 am we were back on the ferry on our way to the airport.

Since not all of the planes had fueled up since we left, a number of the planes made a pit stop in Marsh Harbor to fuel before the longer leg of the flight.

The flight from Abaco to Exuma was the longest flight yet and by the time we landed everyone was ready for lunch. We were met by Rhonda Ingraham and loaded onto buses for the short scenic ride to the Palm Bay Resort. The ocean looked like a magazine spread. You could hardly tell where the teal ocean met the cloudless blue sky. Everyone was already anticipating the cool ocean water after the hot flight.

Walking up to the Palm Bay Resort did not do the resort justice; it was not until you walked out the back of the resort and headed for the villa that you realized the true beauty of the location. The Resort faced east and the sun sent its reflection running over the motionless ocean.  Everyone was pulled between the idea of lunch and the idea of a dip in the waters. We all dropped our stuff off and headed back to the bus so we could catch the ferries out to Stocking Island.

Pulling up to Stocking Island made you want to stay and never leave. It was a true Bahamas location, not a single person in the group wanted to leave when the time came to depart. We had lunch at Chat N’ Chill and everyone had the opportunity to watch the locals make Conch Salad, go snorkeling, and even feed and pet sting rays.

By 4:30 we were heading back to the resort where we had time before dinner to relax. A lot of people took naps or relaxed; others kicked back at the pool or relaxed on the beach.

Dinner was held at Splash (the resort bar and restaurant). The dinner was delicious and afterwards the Bahamas Tourist Office presented Bahamas Gateway FBO specialist certificates to everyone and Bahamas jackets to the Flying Ambassadors and special guests. We also had two individuals on the trip who were celebrating their birthday, and it was arranged for two cakes to be brought out for everyone to share.

After dinner it was time to get some rest for the next morning’s 9 am departure from Exuma back to Florida.

Overall the trip was beneficial and helpful. All those who attended learned something new and have wonderful stories to share and ideas to get more pilots flying to the Bahamas. With so many islands so close to Florida, it is an opportunity you don’t want to miss, because it is truly Better in the Bahamas!

By Chloé Foster

Today was the second day of the Bahamas FAM trip, and everyone met for breakfast around 7:30. Greg Rolle held a quick pilot’s de-briefing to prepare us for the next leg of the trip. He went over flight plans and requirements to ensure that all the pilots had everything they needed. After a quick breakfast everyone had about 2 hours before the bus arrived to take us back to the airport. People could either go to local shops or enjoy a morning walking along the beautiful beach!

Two hours went by too quickly and we were soon back on the bus and heading for Treasure Cay, Abaco. Watching everyone take off into the clear blue sky was something many people don’t get to see. By the time we landed at MYAT everyone was ready to take a break. We were met by Melinda Williams who broke us up into groups and put us on taxies that we took us over to a ferry. From there we took a short ferry ride to Green Turtle Cay. The water was cool, brilliantly blue and everyone was taking advantage of the beautiful photo opportunities.

If we thought Grand Bahama was amazing, pulling up to Green Turtle was breathtaking. The resort was in fact small cottages that ran along the coast line. Each one over looked the beautiful bay. Entering the resort was like entering a page in a travel magazine and the resort representatives were friendly and helpful.

The rooms were adorable, each one designed to make you feel like your home away from home. Sadly, we only had about 30 minutes before we had to board the Prozac charter boat and take the 1 ½ hour long ride down the Abaco Out Island chain to Guana Cay.

The boat ride was beautiful. The water was warm and it was a great time to socialize and talk about past experiences in the Abacos. Pulling into Guana Cay was beautiful; tiny jelly fish were swimming all around the boat and fish were darting underneath the dock. We all got off the boat and began to make our way up to Nippers for lunch and drinks.

Nippers was a beautifully colored beach bar and grill. They had an outside bar with tables overlooking the beach and ocean with two swimming pools and a gift shop. They also had a restaurant where we ate lunch before we took the boat back to Breakers Cay, which was a beautiful private island.

Arriving back at Green Turtle, everyone made their way back to their rooms, where they got ready for happy hour and dinner at the resort’s restaurant. Molly McIntosh, the Director of Sales and Marketing, made sure that everything ran smoothly. During happy hour everyone gathered in the lounge area and watched a video of the last few years on the trip while dinner was being prepared.

After dinner, the pilots were given the opportunity to tell their “best” story and if the crowd liked it, they got a bottle of Fire in da Hole bottle of rum! All the pilots told great stories and before long everyone was laughing and having a wonderful time.

After dinner was leisure time. The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism had secured 10 golf carts for anyone who wanted to go into the town and explore. Even though it was late a few people chose to go into town and went to Pineapples for a few more drinks and some late night dancing, while others called it a night.

Everyone had wished that we would have had more time on the island. Many people had hoped they would have the opportunity to go diving with the world renowned Brendal Stevens from Brendal’s Dive Center…but time was already ticking by too fast!