Flying into Puerto Rico After Maria

netsurfr

netsurfr

Pre-takeoff checklist
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Jose
So my mom (85) lives in Puerto Rico and is stuck in Puerto Rico and I need to consider what options we have to get her out. The airport, tower, and radar facilities are not fully functional presenting chaos for people trying to fly out commercially. Conditions at the airport are very bad and we just don't know when she will realistically get out of there so need to get up to speed on alternatives in the event a commercial flight is not going to work out in a reasonable time.

I checked chartering a plane from WI to PR & back but that option was ridiculously high ($30K). Another option is finding another pilot with a capable plane to perhaps fly to/from PR and Florida and the last option is me flying my Dakota to PR to pick her (and someone else up) and head back. I do have another pilot who would meet me in FL and he has connections both in FL and PR so knows people on the ground who can help us logistically once we get to the island and ensure we can land and get fuel and get out. He also can get an 9 person raft and flotation devices for the portion of the flight over water. So what I could use from the group is help with either option 2 or 3. If you or someone you know is in a position and has a plane capable to fly to PR to pick up 2 people and fly them to FL let me know. Of course compensation/fuel/whatever would be part of this plan. Finally if all I have is option 3 (fly my single engine Dakota) I need any and all info pertinent to such a flight. So if you've flown from FL to Puerto Rico or the Caribbean let me know what I need to know (safety, risks, flight plan, route, permits to fly over Cuba, etc...).

Any ideas/tips will be greatly appreciated...
 
Have you looked at flying her out of Charlotte Amalie on St. Thomas? It's a 70 mile boat ride to get there from PR.

Then again, I have no idea if the airport on St. Thomas is operating any better or if a boat ride is possible.
 
I understand your frustration, as SJU is my hometown and my parents still reside there. I don't think option #3 is a wise course of action. There is no electric power in the majority of the island, so you're looking at an iffy proposition going down there without the availability of 100LL in check. Turk and Caicos got slammed by Maria as well, and you're looking at scalping galore right now for transiting through there, if they're even at 100% ops in the first place. A hasty evac on a single piston is not the way I'd pursue a FL to PR trek with equally battered islands in between.

Your best bet right now is private charters. I read on facebook there's folks trying to charter 737s and make coordinations for one way fares. Last I checked, they were asking $1250 bucks per person, 40 lbs bag max and one small pet if it can fit under the seat.

Sincere wishes as you make arrangements to account for your family. I've stayed pretty silent on here on the topic since it's front and center to my life these days and this place is more of a snark fest. My parents are 10 years younger than yours so they're staying in place, with generator and water cistern. I am however monitoring carefully as the days continue to tick by. The lack of electric power is going to create desperation in the coming weeks, and things stands to deteriorate before they get better if power is not restored to residential areas in short order. Logistically speaking, residential areas are in fact the last areas to gain electric power back.

Does your mother have a filial support structure on the island, or she living down there without family? Honestly, relying on her local help is probably the most practical way of going about this in the short term. Does she have generator and water self-sufficiency, or are we talking complete disconnect from rations and communications?

USVI is a no go btw. Spoke with folks who evacuated St. Croix right before the storm hit. Their supplies and fuel situation is worse than Puerto Rico right now. I'll try to pass down any additional information I can gather regarding conditions on the ground. My hope is they re-establish full power and ground logistics support to the airport, that way they can give the green light to part 121 to resume their schedules. At that point, getting your family member out via commercial should be a breeze.

Take care.
 
ZeroPapaGolf said:
Per MillionAir at TJIG they have plenty of Avgas. Will be finding out for ourselves Thursday or Friday.
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Safe travels. PIREP back the conditions of ATC comms, customs and radar services if you make it down.
 
NPR this afternoon, the Coast Guard and the PR Port Manager (or appropriate title) has reported that the port is fairly clear but the roads to the port are still not drivable due to debris. CBS has reporters down there with sat phones. Disaster doesn't even begin to describe what's happened. With zero communication, no one really knows who is in grave danger and who isn't. Same for getting rescue and aid workers - no comms and little or no accessible roads. Helicopters are about the only transport right now.
 
There's a CAP wing in PR. The last update regarding Hurricane Irma:
"high-frequency radio contact has been restored with CAP units in the U.S. Virgin Islands. CAP’s squadron in St. Croix was working to erect a directional antenna to enhance communications with colleagues in Puerto Rico"

Latest update on effects of Maria:
  • Extremely limited communications has been established via HF radio. No information regarding the island's overall communication structure at this time. Incident Command Post (ICP) location pending. Former ICP has severe damage.
  • Contacts in Washington D.C. have reported the aircraft in Aguadilla and San Juan are serviceable.
  • Mainland CAP crews to arrive in Puerto Rico shortly via Air Force airlift in route.
  • 6PM to 6AM curfew established for the island, which is likely to go through Saturday.
Those of us on the mainland always laughed at the requirement to learn the CAP HF radio system as being a PITA. Guess what? It's really a critical system right now. Unfortunately, there's no additional info coming out, other than a website for PR CAP asking for food/water/shelter status, location, number of people in the group, etc.

On a related note - the path of Maria went directly over Aricebo...wonder what condition that huge antenna is in.
 
1. ARRL and ARC have 25 two person teams going to Puerto Rico to provide HF communications around the island. The teams are being equipped with radios and other equipment. The island's overall communication structure is bad.

2. I saw on Facebook that the radio telescope at Arecibo sustained damage. The large feed horn on the platform was damaged (destroyed?) and there is damage to the reflector. Repairable, but it will take time (and money). No pictures of the damage, but here is one that I took of the platform when I visited over 10 years ago (went out on the platform, as well - what a treat).

100OLYMP-P6290011_P6290011.JPG

HF radio is very valuable. There are times when it is the only way to communicate.
 
I heard on the radio this morning (meaning it may be complete bs) that they are still under martial law, and no civilians are allowed to enter or leave the country, even to provide aide.
 
Salty said:
I heard on the radio this morning (meaning it may be complete bs) that they are still under martial law, and no civilians are allowed to enter or leave the country, even to provide aide.
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That's definitely BS. Look at Flightaware as an example. Lots of flights, including air carriers, every day. There are private relief flights operating daily as well.
 
ZeroPapaGolf said:
That's definitely BS. Look at Flightaware as an example. Lots of flights, including air carriers, every day. There are private relief flights operating daily as well.
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They said that the flights are only first responders. I'm with you.
 
spoke with my parents. 6pm revolving curfew, zero restrictions on movement in and out of the island. appears as though FAA is throttling the schedule due to Atc radar service issues
and lack of complete power restoration to the airport (ground logistics). ports are open.
 
Salty said:
I heard on the radio this morning (meaning it may be complete bs) that they are still under martial law, and no civilians are allowed to enter or leave the country, even to provide aide.
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What idiot radio station would even suggest something like that?
 
It's BS. Regardless of what and how many ships are nearby, the problems are offloading and distribution. Roads are mostly impassable due to debris. Hence no one can get to the port, no one can move anything from the ports. With no power, almost impossible to offload. With no power, no vehicles to distribute anything. The military is sending rescue, construction and medical staff.

Nothing in the article even remotely hints of martial law. What's is in the article is thr headline photo of a military group handing out bottles of water. No date/location of the photo, either.

Let's invoke a bit of logic. If there are all these foreign ships trying to dock - what are they carrying? Did the shippers know 2-3 weeks ago (or more) that PR was going to be devastated and they loaded the ships with relief supplies?

Next, there are no Congressional members representing Puerto Rico. It's not state, hence it has non-voting delegate. There are members with PR heritage, tho.
 
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I'm thinking getting the airport back up & running is high priority. There seems to be some 'humanitarian' flights operating daily now. The regular commercial flights should get going before long, not a full schedule of course.

I'd hold off a bit & check almost daily with airlines that fly there. Check to any destination, work out the rest later. Even a charter type flight may get tripped up now with restrictions. As posted, check nearby airports. I think Punta Cana wasn't hit as bad, nice airport.

All the best with getting her out.
 
Update... Martial Law - False. Curfew - True.

From reports of friends in PR, facebook, and news media I'm feeling a lot more optimistic about conditions at the airport so I'm hoping she can get out sometime next week via commercial flight. The good news today was that a nearby Walgreens opened it's doors and she was able to get a month's supply of her various prescription drugs so that worry is gone. Her building was also able to get diesel fuel for the generator to continue to run so they have power & AC at the lobby area and they also have water in the apartments twice a day. No elevators so she's walking up/down 17 stories but could be worse. Seems like the increased coverage in main stream media that started yesterday seems to be getting the wheels turning. All good news!
 
Just saw where UAL is resuming revenue flights to San Juan, on a reduced schedule. I'd bet the other players are doing the same. I'd be checking for seats outbound.

UAL listed ORD & EWR as destinations.
 
About 18 outbound flights are supposed to happen today so things are improving. We already have airline tickets but the problem is the backlog and small amount of outbound flights but we're hopeful it will improve.

sourdough44 said:
Just saw where UAL is resuming revenue flights to San Juan, on a reduced schedule. I'd bet the other players are doing the same. I'd be checking for seats outbound.

UAL listed ORD & EWR as destinations.
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Martial law is a concept, not an edict. What REALLY happens is the govt declares edicts that go beyond normal laws. Rarely do they say "we are under martial law". Later on, people say, "oh, I guess needing gas coupons was sort of martial law wasn't it". So edicts are just declared. Whether it was martial law or not is debated later on.
 
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PLEASE keep replies to my thread strictly focused on helping. Thanks for your understanding.
 
Brief update:

Fuel is plentiful at TJIG. Also plentiful at MBPV for a midway stop.
 
netsurfr said:
So if you've flown from FL to Puerto Rico or the Caribbean let me know what I need to know (safety, risks, flight plan, route, permits to fly over Cuba, etc...).
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I've made the flight GA before. It was in a Twin Cessna and was a very easy flight. The route I'd suggest is KFPR to MBPV. FPR is an easy place to rent any safety stuff you need and don't have. Provo is quick and easy to clear customs and top off the tanks. It's about 560nm with several divert spots if needed from FPR. Provo to San Juan is a little over 400nm and is all open ocean. TJIG, mentioned above, is where I initially landed to clear customs and top off before flying around the island.

As long as you have the range and the safety equipment, it is not a bad flight. Obviously goes without saying but double triple check the wx and don't push it as the warm water and warm atmosphere can create some gnarly situations.

Wish I could help but unfortunately I don't have the ability right now. I did hear that flights have resumed commercially speaking. Good luck!
 
Thanks for the replies the good news is due to the media finally talking about what's happening in PR things have been improving faster and there now a few more flights going out so were optimistic she can get out this coming week. Her building got a supply of diesel for the generator and she was able to get her critical prescriptions re filled. Looks like I won't have to make the flight.
 
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