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Netherlands Antilles in a Piston Single

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groundpointsix

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 28, 2003
Posts
372
I'm in the early stages of planning a possible flight there and am looking for some input as to routings. Just looking at Google earth it looks like there are 3 choices

1. Go down through Mexico and accross Colombia
Pros: Overland the entire time
Cons: Can one safely overlfy Colombia without getting shot at? Are there enough resources in some of the poorer Central American countries that we could ensure access to fuel, food, and possibly hotels?

2. Island hop through the Bahamas to the Dominican Republic and then take a straight shot down towards the Netherlands Antilles
Pros: Shortest distance
Cons: Almost 500 miles over water in a single (This is a huge con for me and probably a deal breaker)

3. Island hop down the entire Carribean
Pros: Avoids Colombia and Central America
Cons: Still a lot of overwater flying

If the trip goes down we'd have a handler arrange the details as far as legalities and whatnot are concerned, but I'd like to at least be educated enough to have some say in the planning process. If anyone has done this before I'd appriciate their input. Thanks.
 
GroundPointSix

May you RIP. I am saying goodbye so at least you can read it instead of your family.
 
groundpointsix said:
I'm in the early stages of planning a possible flight there and am looking for some input as to routings. Just looking at Google earth it looks like there are 3 choices

1. Go down through Mexico and accross Colombia
Pros: Overland the entire time
Cons: Can one safely overlfy Colombia without getting shot at? Are there enough resources in some of the poorer Central American countries that we could ensure access to fuel, food, and possibly hotels?

2. Island hop through the Bahamas to the Dominican Republic and then take a straight shot down towards the Netherlands Antilles
Pros: Shortest distance
Cons: Almost 500 miles over water in a single (This is a huge con for me and probably a deal breaker)

3. Island hop down the entire Carribean
Pros: Avoids Colombia and Central America
Cons: Still a lot of overwater flying

If the trip goes down we'd have a handler arrange the details as far as legalities and whatnot are concerned, but I'd like to at least be educated enough to have some say in the planning process. If anyone has done this before I'd appriciate their input. Thanks.

Hey that sounds like a great trip. Honestly don't listen to the haters. One of my buddies flew to the Netherlands Antilles in a single. It was a Lake Anphib but still who knows if he would have survived a blue water landing.

I know nothing about Columbia but it sounds like a good place to avoid at first, however it may not be as scary as the media makes it out to be. One of my best friends mom is from there. He claims the citys are safe, but out in the boons its real unsafe. Drug badguys do lots of kidnapping there. They usually kidnap rich folks and use the ransom money to fund a gurrilla war.

The Netherlands Antilles must be a cool place. Why there? I would do a bunch of flights in the region and figure out the best way through word of mouth and meeting people who were experienced travelers in the region. Go to Costa Rica, Mainland Mex ect.

It looks like you could go direct from Panama to Venezuela? Bypass Columbia totally.

Not sure if Panama or Venezuela are better! :erm: I know from the sailing circles that Panama could be very heavy esp. in Panama City.

Good luck what sort of single are you going to take down?
 
I just looked at a map, it doesn't look like you can bypass Colombia completely without going out to sea, which is exactly what I'd be trying to avoid if I went this route. I'm more concerned with flying a slow moving airplane at relatively low altitudes (<10,000) over the jungles of Colombia and getting shot at than I am stopping for fuel and staying on airport property in a major city there.

Don't have any details on the type of plane yet, I should have asked when my boss mentioned it to me. I work for an FBO, the boss is in the process of selling the airplane in question. One of the bidders is in Curacao (spelling?).
 

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