Since March 15, the date I ordered our two journeys in South America to dash back home, international general aviation travel has been at a standstill. With the exception of a Cessna 206, brand new, delivered from Kansas City to Santiago, Chile, by its owner in June and July, a Cessna Citation coming back also from Santiago, and a TBM relocating to Ireland, we haven’t had any journeys and we haven’t sold anything. It’s the first time in my professional life that I have no product to sell and every one of our destinations is closed.
The good news is that hopefully foreign destinations are going to open very soon.
We all carefully watched as the government of the Bahamas decided to reopen late June and early July. They reactivated all their travel related business, which is the only business of the Bahamas, and unfortunately even with all of their good intentions and testing, they soon had to close again. This was to protect the local population and avoid an overwhelming invasion of their care facilities.
Recently it was announced that Phase 3 will begin and reopen the Bahamas on November 1. Phase 3 is re-opening of hotels, but you cannot move around the Bahamas for 14 days. But you can fly back home within these 14 days. Health protocols are a negative Covid-19 PCR test within 72 hours.
From that experience and well as what’s happening in Europe and other parts of the world, we are hopeful that in the beginning of 2021 destinations will open. Obviously, it will not be the same. A little bit of our freedom will disappear but also our health will be better protected. Most likely the destinations will require a PCR test or a saliva test to confirm that no more than 72 hours prior to arrival the pilot and his passengers are negative of COVID. Then distancing in the different properties, wearing a mask, and not gathering in large groups should make experiences as enjoyable as they have been; since we travel to these destinations in the Caribbean to enjoy the scenery and be in the open air.
We are looking closely at being able to include in our program a second or even a third destination and I’m happy to share with you that there are a number of fast PCR testing facilities available in some of the islands.
For our journeys, we are looking at this time for a single-destination journey that will involve a flight out, four nights on site, and then return. For the earlier journeys, we will bring with us a doctor to be at our disposal and check what needs to be done in case of a problem.
We are hopeful that in the spring Europe will reopen, which will include Canada and Iceland. Canada has been closed since March, and Iceland is somewhat open. It has strict requirements, including a negative PCR test result within 72-hours of arrival. If that isn’t possible, a visitor can have the test on arrival, but then must stay in one place. Then four days later do a test again. This is all before they can start to enjoy the destination. Other countries have similar and different rules at this time.
In the next coming issues, I will share with you the evolution of the different protocols and requirements. We hope to re-open the office in the second part of October and be advertising some journeys to the Caribbean as a one-stop destination where all the details and requirements will be included. One of the most important requirements will be for you to be able to do a COVID test at home and have the results communicated to you by noon the next day.
In the meantime if you want any answers, feel free to email me at [email protected] and I will be happy to share with you the knowledge on the different destinations.
