Changes in the Bahamas - new rules and fees and an observation

Bahamas use to be haven for drug smugglers. They are obviously making sure that doesn’t happen again. But I have never had my boat or myself searched. One way to avoid this is land at an airport with FBO. You are going to want to fly around sightseeing anyway, just plan on doing it after you arrive.


Tom
 
k9medic said:
For those of you who frequent the Bahamas or are thinking of heading over this year, there are some changes that are taking place accoding to the aviation authority officials at MYAT.

1. According to the Bahamian Aviation Authority, if you are flying into an airport that does not have an FBO, plan on being searched by a local official before you leave depart the airport in your plane.

At MYAT, this has been going on for the past two years or so with an airport official doing the searching. It started with "I just need to look in your bags" and as of last weekend is now up to a full hands on phystial search of your body and your bags. To include removing my hat and my belt!

On this past trip I asked why I was being searched since I was going to my own plane and I could carry what I wanted on my own plane. The (nice) lady said that since it's an international airport without an FBO they have to conduct a search to meet FAA requirements. I told her I had a C7A form and she had no idea what I was talking about.

2. There is now a tie down fee for all aircraft at airports without an FBO. I paid $11.19 VAT included for my tie down of 3 nights. When you leave you will be asked for the receipt that you paid your tie down fee. If you don't have it, expect a hassle and hope that they still have the manifest from when you arrived.

3. They are installing an AWOS at MYAT. Who knows when this will be up and running. Hopefully it won' be like the control tower at MYAM (they didn't run electric.)


For my weekend trip over, the costs to get into and out of the airport is broken down as follows:
$50 "airport tax" (aka a landing fee)
$11 overnight parking
$29 per person exit fee (x4 for me)
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Sorry to hear about you being search or was that a Bahamas rub down! Next time ask for a happy ending :)
 
She asked me if I objected to a female patting me down. I told her not as long as she buys me a drink first.

I laughed, my wife laughed, she however, did not.
 
k9medic said:
You’re driving a Prius compared to mine.

0.7nmpg at 17kts cruise. Twin CAT 3116’s.
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Had a 60 Hatteras with 3212's burning 80 GPH doing 26 knots! God that thing loved fuel!! Got a 45 foot Carolina custom now with QSM-11's and burning half the fuel and more speed!
 
I went to the Bahamas in November, it was extremely straightforward and easy. I wouldn't let anything like this stop me. Didn't experience a single search.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
When you're swimming, 50nm is awfully far. You won't make it without help.

IIRC, it was about $100 for a week for a four-person raft with provisions. Cheap peace of mind.
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And even if you could swim that far, depending on the water temperature, you might not stay conscious very long.
 
Palmpilot said:
And even if you could swim that far, depending on the water temperature, you might not stay conscious very long.
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Yep. Not as big of an issue in the Caribbean, but it still can be.

One airplane that's in my logbook, N5360F, went into Lake Michigan. The ditching wasn't fatal, but the exposure was. After that reality check, I decided that a cold bath is not how I want to go. I also briefly considered becoming an international ferry pilot. I still fly over water, but I have a protocol for doing so.
 
PBI to west end is about 50nm, so if you climb high enough you can be in glide range of either shore. That’s about 12000’ in a Mooney. Ditto for crossing the Great Lakes, assuming you take the shortest crossing point.


Tom
 
flyingcheesehead said:
One airplane that's in my logbook, N5360F, went into Lake Michigan. The ditching wasn't fatal, but the exposure was. After that reality check, I decided that a cold bath is not how I want to go. I also briefly considered becoming an international ferry pilot. I still fly over water, but I have a protocol for doing so.
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Looked up the NTSB report for that tail. Yikes. Sad. Completely preventable.
 
Having had my fair share of water survival training as part of the ol' day job, I really cannot justify foregoing the cost of a simpleton life raft rental. I've seen folks cross the Atlantic side of the Caribbean over open blue with family (small children) on board. Good on 'em, but a ditching scenario over A555 east of Turks and Caicos would not be pretty with family on board and no life raft. 4-man gas-canister rafts with repair kit are circa 35 bucks a day from FBOs in KFXE and KFPR. No excuse indeed.
 
fasteddie said:
Looked up the NTSB report for that tail. Yikes. Sad. Completely preventable.
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Yup. Stupid 19-year-old kid trick. :( He thought he could make it.

Don't ever think you can make it. KNOW you can make it. And in Lake Michigan in April, nobody's gonna make it. Kid was a competitive swimmer, but there ain't anyone that's gonna make it 5 miles in 38-degree water.

The diver who went down to get the plane off the bottom of the lake gave a presentation at Oshkosh. He showed video from when he went down. Plane was fine but for a cracked spinner (from when it hit the bottom of the lake, before settling down on its landing gear) and one section of leading edge of the wing that had some damage. It was a picture-perfect ditching, too bad he's not around to tell us how he did it!

But at one point in the video, the diver looked past the left wingtip of the plane, and there on the floor of the lake just a few feet away was the cell phone. It was the flip-phone style... And it was still open.

They never did find the kid. :(

hindsight2020 said:
Having had my fair share of water survival training as part of the ol' day job, I really cannot justify foregoing the cost of a simpleton life raft rental. I've seen folks cross the Atlantic side of the Caribbean over open blue with family (small children) on board. Good on 'em, but a ditching scenario over A555 east of Turks and Caicos would not be pretty with family on board and no life raft. 4-man gas-canister rafts with repair kit are circa 35 bucks a day from FBOs in KFXE and KFPR. No excuse indeed.
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This. Absolutely. Some of the cheapest insurance you'll ever buy.

It was easy to convince myself to spend the money, too. All I had to do was to think about what it would feel like to be treading water wishing I had rented the raft. Seems like a pretty easy decision once you do that.
 
The war on “terrorism” is getting to be a bigger jobs project than the war on drugs ever was. The powers to be would love you to think there is a terrorist behind every tree, so they can continue to erode our liberties at their personal gain. The real reason they are checking every thing and making sure they collect the money.
 
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