Don't worry about GPS satellites going out-that's the least of your worries down in the Bahamas. I left Venice Beach IFR to Freeport with no problems. Customs is a breeze and nothing else (except outrageously expensive cab rides) was a problem. The problem I did have, however, was in Nassau. We were running from Hurricane Olga the entire trip and while we were in Nassau, a storm moved in. Naturally, the FBO we parked at didn't have tie downs, and due to the high winds, I was concerned. I called the airport to have the plane moved next door to Executive Air (they were equipped with tie downs). After much Mickey Mousing around, I was assured that the winds wouldn't be a problem and all would be well. I left them the hotel number, just in case. 3 days went by and it was time to leave. As we loaded the plane, we were surprised to find that all of our baggage was gone! The air had also been let out of the tires! After speaking with the Embassy and the American Consulate, it was determined that airport security became suspicious when I asked that my plane be moved and the Royal Bahamian Police and the Drug Enforcement Unit were called. They got a locksmith and broke into my plane without a warrant and seized all our luggage. Naturally, nothing was found and they let us go (without an apology) and all that was lost was 5 hours of our time and some clothes were ruined. When they finally brought our luggage to us (from the other side of the island), as we inspected our possessions, we noticed ketchup stains on clothes which tells us they were stuffing their faces as they debated whether or not to plant a kilo of blow in our bags in an attempt to extort bond money from us on our way out. Being fearful of their prior unlawful tactics, I didn't want to raise a big stink and therefore decided to reduce the possibility of any future creative law enforcement tactics. This was their down seasonn (because of 9/11) and we were 2 of the very few tourists on the island for them to suck money out of. The Bahamas are very nice and the locals are incredibly hospitable, but when it comes to navaids, government, or getting anything accomplished in a timely fashion, forget it!
Also, they are in no hurry to remove airplane wreckages...we saw at least 3 wrecked planes at the end of the runway on Andros, 2 on Nassau and 3 in Bimini from who knows when. One of the wrecks came in handy in Bimini, as we needed fuel, so they punched a hole in the wing and siphoned it out so we could head back to the States.
All in all it was a nice trip, I am flying over Cuba to the Caymans with Belladonna, (girlfriend and new member here also), in June. I hope I don't have to ditch in Cuba, that would be interesting to say the least!
Tim
