Planning a trip?

e’s been answering member questions for more than three decades, and you know what else he’s been doing? Flying. That’s what makes the staff of the PIC so important to you; they are pilots, too. Active ones. So, when you ask Martz—or any of the other PIC pilots—about planning a trip to, say, the Bahamas, guess what? He’s flown there several times and is planning to go back soon: “I want to see the swimming pigs.” Don’t we all, Rodney, don’t we all.

March is the month the PIC sees an uptick to questions about travel, with the number of questions about flying to the Bahamas the largest. The trip is a challenge for the first-time international traveler, Martz says, but it’s also “simple, easy, and quite popular.” Martz first runs through the basic prep and planning required. He acknowledges there are a lot of “little hoops” to go through and each is significant, but the process is easier than it looks. The AOPA website details the steps to be taken, and Martz admonishes to plan ahead. “There’s a couple of days of preparation before you just take off.”

The high points of international travel include filing an eAPIS (electronic advance passenger information system), medical questions (the Bahamas were the first international destination to approve flight for pilots flying under BasicMed), customs, and basic planning. Yes, there are five web pages to this helpful document, but “it’ll go faster than you think,” says Martz. If you have a question, just call him. (Disclaimer: There are 15 people who could possibly answer your call, so this is rhetorical. Call 800-872-2672 and see who answers—they are expert pilots and have all flown internationally). You can also email the experts at [email protected].

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