NEWS - Updated July25, 2010

To remain up to date on aviation News regarding flying to Mexico, flying to the Bahamas or flying to Central America, and on upcoming fully escorted FLY-IN's, visit our contact us page and send us your e-mail address.

NEW Caribbean Sky Tours launches membership organization to promote the interests of General Aviation in Bahamas, Caribbean, Central America and Mexico.

July 25, 2010: Caribbean Sky Tours announces the creation of its membership organization: Caribbean Sky Tours Pilot Association. For many years Caribbean Sky Tours has been promoting the interests of gneral aviation pilots and aircraft owners in the Bahamas, Caribbean, Central America and Mexico. By leveraging their network of contacts in local, state and federal governments in many countries as well as service providers throughout the region, they have been able to articulate the needs and benefits of general aviation tourism to their countries and destinations.

Many pilots and flying orgaizations have turned to Caribbean Sky Tours for reliable, up-to-date infromation. By creating this association, mmbers will have access to infromation that will facilitate travel to many different countries.

Your membership nd support will allow the association to continue lobbying and working with govenments and service providers. Find out why so many fling organizations turn to Caribbean Sky Tours for information and how you can obtain unique access. Visit the new membership website.

Tower frequency changes in Cancun and Cozumel:

July 8, 2010: The Cancun and Cozumel towers have swapped frequencies. Cancun tower frequencies are now 118.6 and 118.1 (formerly the Cozumel tower frequency) wheras Cozumel tower is now 118.0. These changes have NOT yet made their way into Mexico's AIP and consequently have not yet been published. However, the changes are in effect and we want to alert pilots as these changes can be extremely confusing to those who have charts showing the previous frequencies.

Caribbean Sky Tours meets with new head of ATC in Cancun/Cozumel

July 8, 2010: Caribbean Sky Tours met with the new head of ATC (SENEAM) in Cancun, Raul Vega, to review concerns and issues faced by general aviation aircraft visiting the Cancun/Cozumel area. The meeting was extremely positive and we have agreed to organize regional metings between ATC management and general aviation aircraft owners and operators to share concerns, ideas and options.

The new 2010 Pilot's Guide to Mexico began shipments today:

June 8, 2010: We are happy to announce that we have begun shipping our new 2010 Pilot's Guide to Mexico, our most ambitious Pilot Guide project ever covering ALL OF MEXICO. As many pilots know, Mexico has approximately 1,400 airports on record, however, the vast majority of these airports are illegal or unsafe to use by visiting pilots. Therefore, to avoid putting pilots in legal or personal peril, we have worked closely with the Mexican civil aviation officials (DGAC) in Mexico City and at the regional level to identify airports that can be used by pilots visiting Mexico. Any pilot that believes that an airport not contained in the guide is useable can contact Caribbean Sky Tours and we will verify the airport's current status. If that airport is deemed usable, we will provide customers with a link on our website so that other customers can download the airport information. The new guie contains triple the number of airports and more destination write-ups. Our Pilot's Guide is proudly printed in the USA. For more details, visit the Pilot's Guide page on our website.

Mexico implements new Immigration Forms for tourists, residents and nationals:

June 8, 2010: On May 1, 2010 Mexico replaced its tourist cards and FME forms used for tourists, pilots, residents, visa holders and nationals with two new forms. The Form - "Forma Migratoria Múltiple" (FMM) which is shown to the right is used for tourists and persons with an FM-2 or FM-3 visa. The Form - "Formato Estadistico para Mexicanos" is for Mexican Nationals. Caribbean Sky Tour staff were amongst the first people to use this form when we departed on our Central America trip on May 1, the day the new forms were implemented. Visitors will need to complete the front of the form while the back of the form is completed by the immigration officials. Forms are printed in an English version and a separate Spanish version, they are not bi-lingual as before.

Caribbean Sky Tours returns from 10 day trip through Central America:

May 12, 2010: Caribbean Sky Tours recently completed a 10 day trip through Central America with principal stops in Guatemala, Honduras and Costa Rica. During the trip, we flew into a number of international as well as non-international airports to update our information database on destinations, meet with aeronautical officials, verify airport information and prepare for our upcoming Central America Fly-In. Pilots wishing to travel to these countries can take advantage of this updated information by contacting Caribbean Sky Tours.

IMPORTANT TRAVEL ALERT ON COSTA RICA: The Costa Rican government has enacted draconian traffic laws including fines of US$ 500 for being only 12 mph over the speed limit and US$ 600 for not wearing a seatbealt. Neither the rental car companies nor the US Embassy have issued any type of alerts or warnings to visitors. Anyone planning to rent a car while visiting Costa Rica should be aware that these new laws are in effect, that traffic police are not issuing warnings to tourists and that offering any bribes to a police officer is considered a very serious offense.

Caribbean Sky Tours interviewed by Craig Fuller, President of AOPA during Sun-N-Fun 2010:

April 20, 2010: Caribbean Sky Tours was once again exhibiting at Sun-N-FUN in Lakeland, Florida promoting international flying to Mexico, Central America and the Bahamas. Craig Fuller, President of AOPA, took some time to interview Rick Gardner of Caribbean Sky Tours to discuss recent activities and trends in international flying. To see the interview click here.

406 MHz ELT requirement for Mexico postponed until December 31, 2011 for private aircraft:

March 17, 2010: Additional details: The deadline extension for 406 MHz ELT's differentiates between aircraft used for commercial and private flights. In all cases, the DGAC is stresing the importance of 406 MHz technology in improving the efficiency of Search And Rescue (SAR) and the survivability of a crash.

Commercial Use Aircraft: Aircraft that are used for commercial flights must have their ELT installed by December 31, 2010 or when the battery of the 121.5 MHz ELT expires, whichever comes first.

Private Use Aircraft: Aircraft used exclusively for private flights must have their ELT replaced by December 31, 2011 or if their 121.5 ELT is replaced prior to that date, then it must be replaced with a 406 MHz ELT. There is no mention of battery replacement triggering mandatory replacement of the ELT for private use aircraft. Fo more details, visit the Aeronauical Information of the Mmbers website.