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Your first landing in the Bahamas will be at an airport of entry. You can fly most subsequent legs by “island hopping” with shorter overwater distances, and you’ll usually be in sight of land the entire time. From the West Palm Beach area, it’s about 60 nm over water to Grand Bahama Island (where Freeport is). The overwater distance is about 50 nm from the Fort Lauderdale/Miami area to Bimini and another 60 nm to Andros Island. You should request customs by indicating “ADCUS” on your flight plan, although it’s a good idea to call ahead and confirm Bahamian customs availability if you’re flying into a small airport with irregular customs service. ![]() File an international VFR or IFR flight plan and activate it before you penetrate the ADIZ eastbound. If they’re not painted on, you can use duct tape like I do. Twelve-inch N-numbers are required on aircraft in the ADIZ. Caribbean Sky Tours provides one copy for each airplane on their group trips, and to customers of their vacation planning services, (786) 206-6147 or (866) 420-9265, It is also available through Pilot Getaways, (818) 241-1890 or (877) 4-AVBOOK,. The “Bahamas & Caribbean Pilot’s Guide” by Pilot Publishing is an indispensable, illustrated airport directory for the Bahamas, and most of the Caribbean including Cuba, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and U.S. To go any farther east or south, you’ll need the CH-25 or CJ-26 WAC charts. Both the PLB and the vest are available from Prepared Pilot, (801) 455-5271 or (866) 869-9639, The Miami Sectional Aeronautical Chart covers the western Bahamas, including Nassau, Freeport, Treasure Cay, northwestern Eleuthera, and the northwestern Exumas. One of the most useful items you can put in those pockets is a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB), such as the ACR Microfix that I carry, $650. Their Coast Guard-approved, inflatable Nomex vest has multiple pockets for gear, $219. #Bahamas immigration card pdf reader upgrade#If you’ll be flying over water regularly, you may want to upgrade to lighter, more comfortable vests, like SOSPENDERS. The staff will even help you fill out the forms. Hangar 63, Banyan’s Aviation Store at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (FXE), sells vests for $46 and Survival Products life rafts for $1,095– $1,295, Mon–Sat 8 a.m.–7 p.m., Sun 9 a.m.– 6 p.m., (954) 493-8615 or (888) 305-4932, You can also rent life vests for $6 per day or rafts for $35 per day at Banyan’s FBO counter, open 24 hours, (954) 491-3170, Ask them for a Bahamas packet, with all the forms you’ll need as well as useful information. Coast Guard-approved life jackets are required for each occupant a life boat is recommended as well. #Bahamas immigration card pdf reader download#For more information on customs procedures, download the “Guide for Private Flyers” from the CBP’s Travel page. Get a customs user fee decal, which costs $27.50 and is valid for one calendar year, at (click “Travel” and then “User Fee Decals and Transponders”). Also, check with your insurance agent to confirm that you are insured in the Bahamas. Download the forms from the FCC’s website or apply online, (202) 418-0680. To get them, submit three FCC forms (159, 160, and 605), along with a $50–$100 application fee. #Bahamas immigration card pdf reader license#International flights require a radiotelephone operator’s license for you and a radio station license for the airplane. #Bahamas immigration card pdf reader registration#You’ll need the permanent aircraft registration a temporary “pink slip” is not valid for international travel. ![]() Verify that you have the standard aircraft and pilot documents that are required for any flight: a pilot certificate and a current medical for you, and airworthiness and registration certificates, operating limitations, and weight and balance for the airplane. Recent changes in passport requirements have resulted in many new passport applications, increasing the processing time beyond the official three to four weeks. However, with a little advance planning, most pilots have found the flight goes smoothly and leaves them with lasting memories.Īpply for your passport well in advance. Pilots who have not flown abroad may be apprehensive about flying to the Bahamas, especially if they haven’t flown over water before. That’s when it became clear that flying internationally is simply a matter of a little bureaucracy, and is well worth the effort. The engine kept droning along, oblivious to the fact that we were now in foreign airspace. Although it was just a 20-minute jaunt across the U.S.Mexico border, I had been apprehensive weeks in advance. ![]() I vividly remember the excitement of my first international flight. ![]()
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