The 2011 Bahamas & Caribbean Pilot’s Guide has been released.
After 33 years in print, the Bahamas & Caribbean Pilot’s Guide remains the only single-source reference for island travel, according to the publishers. This is the 15th edition for John and Betty Obradovich.
Written primarily for pilots, the 400-page spiral bound Pilot’s Guide is a source of information for non-aviators too. With accommodations and recreational information, the book is full of resources to help you plan where to go, where to stay and what to do. The Pilot’s Guide is organized into tabbed sections: the Bahamas, Turks & Caicos, Hispaniola/Cuba (Dominican Republic, Haiti), Western Caribbean (Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Yucatan, Belize, Roatan), Puerto Rico/Virgin Islands, Eastern Caribbean (Anguilla south to Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao), United States (Florida airports with Customs) and Survival. Within each section there is travel information on the islands and the country, accommodation and car rental listings, pilot info, maps and airport information. Included are frequencies, runway details, hours, fuel availability, color aerial photographs of every airport in the Bahamas and the Caribbean, GPS designators as well as longs and lats – a necessity to find some of the small airports that won’t be in your GPS database. The general information section covers customs, flight plans, forms, procedures, and required equipment in great detail.
This edition of the Bahamas & Caribbean Pilot’s Guide features an extended Puerto Rico section. With double the pages than the 2010 Pilot’s Guide, this section has been completely revised. The Puerto Rico section includes an expanded editorial for many of the cities, new photographs and new text all through the section.
Published annually since 1979, the Bahamas & Caribbean Pilot’s Guide is the only comprehensive, complete airport facilities directory available for the Bahamas & Caribbean. Also available are two color VFR WAC scale charts. One covers the entire Bahamas and the Turks & Caicos, and the other is the entire Caribbean from Puerto Rico to the islands off the coast of Venezuela. The charts are $8.95 each, of both for $16.
A Forms Kit is also available for $21.95 that includes multiple copies of the forms you need for the Bahamas. You can also purchase a pad of NCR General Declaration forms for $21.95. The Pilot’s Guide is available for $56.95 from Pilot Publishing, Inc. 800-521-2120 or 760-775-1900 or FlyTheIslands.com. The Pilot’s Guide and charts can also be purchased through Sporty’s, Hanger63 at Ft. Lauderdale Executive airport, Volo Aviation at Fort Pierce airport, and at more than 90 other pilot shops and FBOs.
I have used the Bahamas & Caribbean Pilots Guide for several flights to the Islands of the Bahamas over the years, beginning in the 80’s, and have found it to be an invaluable source of information. It makes flying the Bahama Out Islands a wonderful experience.