Flying in the sky is one thing, but for 14 student pilots from both Ireland and Kazakhstan participating in an international weekend flight to the Bahamas will be a new experience for many of them.


Thanks to the assistance of The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism on Friday March 5th a large group of 13 aircraft and 31 people made up of students and instructors flew, out of Banyan on their way to Nassau in The Bahamas.


Barry Gargan, one of the students participating in the flight said, “This is my first time to fly on an international trip. I’ll be piloting the aircraft with my instructor, Carlton McLean and I’m looking forward to it.”

Once in Nassau, the students have the option of either relaxing on the beaches and exploring the island or participating in an Island Fly-Out to Staniel Cay where they will be able to partake in a sightseeing boat tour around the island.


To ensure the safety during this international flight all the students were required to meet all the prerequisites and participate in an in-depth briefing about the trip as well as garner as much additional information about such things as weather conditions and destination as they could.


Flight Instructor, Carlton McLean, has flown to The Bahamas several times, but even for him, traveling with such a large group is a new experience.


“Previously I’ve flown to The Bahamas with 2 – 4 aircraft and today it’s 13 aircraft. The logistics of getting everyone and everything ready has been our goal. We want everything to go smoothly, the documentation, eAPIS, etc and I feel confident we have everything 100% ready,” said Carlton McLean.


Banyan was proud to be the kickoff point for this Fly-Out and hope that every student gets the experience of a lifetime.