Bahama Flying for me?

[daveymac82c]

Hey everyone,

there's a chance I might be able to snag a flying job in the Bahamas. That's pretty exciting for a young trained pilot trying to find his first flying job.

As it turns out my girlfriend (Marina), who is American, works on her school's campus here in Vancouver, BC and she works with a girl from the Bahamas. She's known the girl for a while and that she was born and raised down there, but it was only a few days ago that she learned that her father is in charge of hiring pilots for an airline that operates in the Bahamas.

I immediately became excited about the possibility of getting a job down there! Chances are it's fairly easy flying... VFR, single pilot, multi-engine, maybe?? At least that's what I assume. Imagine building PIC Multi time in the Caribbean??? I've never been down there. I've never been anywhere quite like it, except for Australia, but I can tell that it's a totally different animal from Australia.

So, I started researching the airlines that service the Bahamas and tried looking up blogs and info about what it's like living there.

I came up with quite a bit of stuff. It looks like a beautiful place, but it sounds like living there can cause a few headaches.

Regardless, I'm quite interested in the prospects of maybe having a shoe in into the industry down there.

Is there anyone here on WIX who's been down there and can give a little insight into life in the Bahamas?

As well, does anybody know what it's like flying in that part of the world? (I assume quite similar to flying in Florida).

And, would anyone know the reputations of the different airlines down there?

I need to get Marina to ask her friend what the name of the airline is, and then I'll see if I can get together with her and pick her brain about the company, and ya know, just give her an impression of who I am so she can maybe pull some strings and get me a chance to work down there.

So, there you go... I'm excited. The worst case scenario is that I would be back to where I am right now, without a flying job, but the best case scenario could see me flying a Navajo in a tropical paradise.

Peace,

David

[Bill Greenwood]

I don't know about living there, but I have flown down twice, as well as on the airlines. Pretty easy conditions most of the time, just don't forget there is a lot of water down there.
Some places ,Nassau, etc. have big city crime,but no worse than much of the US.

[the330thbg]

I thought you were restoring a cargo aircraft in Brazil?

[daveymac82c]

Sooo.... does anybody know the pilot licensing requirements for flying for an airline in the Bahamas?

I wonder how I will need to modify my current Canadian Commercial Pilot License in order to get a job down there. Do they require an FAA license, do they have their own Aviation Authority that I must convert my license to? Would a Canadian Pilot License satisfy their licensing requirements?

It's hard to find any information like that online, perhaps there's someone here on WIX that has an in sight?

Peace,

David

[Enemy Ace]

Yer pilot's license is not an issue. The only job skill you need is to keep your mouth shut about the cargo and land at the proper dirt strip at the right time after crossing the coast low and fast. And that isn't baby powder or oregano leaking out of those bags, sport.
I hear it pays well though.
Get yourself a pair of mirrored sunglasses, may as well look the part.

[the330thbg]

Yer pilot's license is not an issue. The only job skill you need is to keep your mouth shut about the cargo and land at the proper dirt strip at the right time after crossing the coast low and fast. And that isn't baby powder or oregano leaking out of those bags, sport.
I hear it pays well though.
Get yourself a pair of mirrored sunglasses, may as well look the part.

\

LMAO

[Randy Haskin]

Just make sure you check out the reputation of whatever flying operation it is before you join. I suggest a forum like jetcareers.com where a lot of young pilots discuss various companies and their work environments.

Many operations that will hire relatively inexperienced pilots also use that leverage as an excuse for low pay or poor work rules. There are plenty of shady operators out there. Don't let the prospect of flying in the sunny Bahamas cloud your vision about those facts.

Could be a really great job, and could be a turd. You're on the right track by asking about it first, though.

[daveymac82c]

Hey Randy,

thanks for the input.

I never really considered flying in the Bahamas until now. That`s why I`m trying to do as much research as I can.

My girlfriend has a friend at school whose Dad hires for a couple airlines down there. I hope to get a hold of him, find out what his hiring requirements are and apply to either of his companies. If I don`t qualify for the companies he works for then I plan on using him as a resource to find out about the operators down there; which are shady and which are reputable.

sugar operators are everywhere, so I do have a good idea of what to ask about, and what not. Here in Vancouver there used to be an air carrier (freight mainly) who didn`t pay their co-pilots because they thought the hours they were letting the co-pilots fly was enough payment.

I will certainly check out jetcareers.com. That sounds like a good resource. Up here in Canada we`ve got a site like that called avcanada.ca It sounds similar, but from reading some of the posts there are a lot of bitter, angry, jaded pilots that contribute and sometimes it`s hard to get a straight answer.

Oh, and the sun and beaches really doesn`t have an effect on my judgment. The prospect of a flying job does.

Thanks,

David

[JDK]

I thought you were restoring a cargo aircraft in Brazil?

Wrong poster.

David, see:
http://www.pprune.org.uk/

Don't forget to checkout the Godzone and Dahnunder forum too.

Meantime:
http://kathymexted.typepad.com/my_weblo ... hamas.html

[Gary M]

I flew in/out of Freeport and Nassau many times in my airline days. Closest mid-air collision I ever had was shooting a VOR approach into Nassau. We pop out of the clouds (in a 737) and almost ran over an Aztec who was in front of us!
We went missed approach and the tower "claimed" that the Aztec had a broken radio and yet 30 minutes later we seem him load up his pax and taxi back out!!

The point I'm making is that their "ATC" system leaves a LOT to be desired and that as others have warned, there are many shady operators down there........ I think back to some of the things that I "did" in order to build time (not drugs, but more of safety related stuff.....overweight takeoffs, etc) and I still shake my head.......

What you will find there are runways that have lots of potholes, lights that don't work, nav/aids that work only sometimes, poor wx reports, maybe fuel, maybe not and on and on....... I'm sure that the "novelty factor" would wear off pretty quickly...... But building time isn't always a bowl of cherries!

The Bahamas is a gorgeous country and I spend a lot of time there each summer on my boat. You'd be very WISE to find out exactly what you are getting into there before even getting near an airplane! If you want to read a fascinating book about flying in the Bahamas get a copy of "The Island Airman" by Paul C. Aranha.

I have a good buddy who flew 402s over there for 3 years after getting laid off at Eastern and Pan Am and his stories rate from hilarious to downright scary! He doesn't EVER want to go back there again!

Good luck!

[Cubs]

One other possible source is the discussion forum on www.flightaware.com

I think there are some current members operating aircraft down there.

[daveymac82c]

Thanks for all the help and suggestions guys, I will check them out and see where this goes.

Peace,

David