By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The world’s largest private pilots group yesterday issued a “travel advisory” alert on The Bahamas over “the substantial and egregious” fee increases imposed on the sector in the 2024-2025 Budget.

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), which represents between 300,000 to 400,000 private plane owners and pilots, said it “feels a responsibility” to warn an industry that generates one out of every six stopover tourists to The Bahamas about “the significant fees they will pay” upon landing in this nation.

And the Association implied it had been forced to adopt this stance because of “little to no response from the Bahamian government”, as well as Prime Minister Philip Davis KC, to its pleas to adjust hikes that represent a three-fold and six-fold increase, respectively, on the previous Customs fee structure for private aviation which was $50 “inbound” and zero “outbound”.

Unveiling its Bahamas “travel advisory” across all its private aviation digital media and communication network, AOPA said its president, Mark Baker, had submitted an alternative fee structure to the Government in August this year but again received no reply.

Identifying the “high fees” as the rationale for its Bahamas travel alert, AOPA said: “As of July 1, 2024, the Bahamas Customs & Excise Department has imposed substantial and egregious fees on pilots flying general aviation aircraft on recreational flights. Pilots should be mindful of these new and additional fees before considering flying to The Bahamas.”

It added that these fees “in many cases exceeded” those being imposed on the larger commercial airlines, but its pleas for The Bahamas to reconsider had seemingly fallen on deaf ears despite AOPA’s president reaching out to Mr Davis on several occasions.

“Baker also submitted an alternative fee proposal in August that included an annual decal programme, but the Prime Minister has not responded,” AOPA said. “After repeated attempts to find an equitable resolution to the high fees with the Prime Minister over the past few months - even proposing a more reasonable fee schedule, and a personal request from Baker to meet in The Bahamas with the Prime Minister- AOPA has received little to no response from the Bahamian government.

“Although AOPA stands ready to work with officials in The Bahamas to resolve the imposition of unfair and unreasonable fees, and ensure general aviation activity in The Bahamas continues to be robust and accessible, AOPA feels a responsibility to issue a Travel Advisory to alert its hundreds of thousands of members about the significant fees they will pay when visiting The Bahamas.”

Mr Baker added: “These fees will not only discourage pilots from flying to The Bahamas, but they will also have a negative impact on the Bahamian citizens and businesses involved in the tourism industry, especially in the outer islands that are most easily reached by general aviation aircraft.

“I’m ready fly to The Bahamas as soon as the Prime Minister is able to meet on this issue. Pilots understand the need to impose fees for infrastructure improvements, but it is a real shame the Bahamian government has chosen to penalise private pilots whose desire is to enjoy all The Bahamas has to offer.”

Latrae Rahming, the Prime Minister’s communications director, asked Tribune Business to “share” the AOPA advisory with him when contacted for comment, which this newspaper duly did. However, no reply was received before press time last night.

Rick Gardner, a Bahamas flying ambassador and director of CST Flight Services, which provides support services to the general aviation industry, last night told Tribune Business that the fee increases have provided “a gift” to this nation’s nearby Caribbean competitors - the Dominican Republic, Turks & Caicos Islands and the Cayman Islands - by giving private pilots an incentive to travel there instead.

“These guys are going to go somewhere else,” he warned. “We’ve incentivised them to go a bit further. I think that it is tragic that, despite having the long standing support of AOPA and of the all-volunteer group of Bahamas Flying Ambassadors at its disposal, the Government would proceed with major investments and increased/new fees without asking for guidance or feedback beforehand.

“Unfortunately this is not the first time that the Government has done this, which leads me to wonder why they keep risking the alienation of a very attractive tourism market. A market that does not need, nor want, fancy airline terminals, large commercial parking ramps nor any large infrastructure projects.

“All they need is a runway without potholes and a decent place to park their planes. Yet here we are again. This pattern of behaviour does not bode well for the general aviation tourism market that provides its own transportation to any Family Island in The Bahamas.”

Mr Gardner said the Government has for years either been increasing or adding new aviation-related fees, but the promised airport and other infrastructure upgrades that these monies were supposed to finance have yet to materialise.

“For many years now, the Government has been adding or increasing fees on private aircraft under the argument that the funds are needed to maintain and improve the runways. Well, during all of those years the improvements that I have seen were actually funded by the resort owners on those islands so that private aircraft could safely land and visit their destinations,” he told Tribune Business.

“Now the Government is handing over the ports of entry of the country to private operators who will no doubt be more focused on the well-being of their profits and not on the well-being of those hard working Bahamians who depend on tourism

“Every aircraft that stops travelling to The Bahamas due to these actions is not just depriving the airport operators and government of the hundreds of dollars in fees but, rather, the Bahamian tourism economy of the thousands of dollars they would have spent on ground transportation, lodging, restaurants, activities etc,” he continued.

“And one of the great things about private aircraft, they will go wherever the owner wants them to go. Turks and Caicos, the Dominican Republic and other Caribbean tourism destinations are being handed a gift.”

Kerry Fountain, the Bahama Out Island Promotion Board’s executive director, told Tribune Business he was “not surprised” to learn of AOPA’s actions but declined to comment and instead referred this newspaper to his previous comments on the issue when he warned that this nation is “eliminating our competitive advantage” every time it raises fees on the private aviation industry.

Warning that private pilots will “fly beyond us if they feel slighted”, he lamented the failure to consult, and provide advance warning, to an industry responsible for bringing more stopover visitors to The Bahamas than Canada, Europe and Latin America combined on the increased Customs fees.

And, given that Florida provided 95,000 of the 323,000 total private aviation visitors to The Bahamas in 2023 to cement its status as the leading US source market, Mr Fountain warned that every time fees increase it threatens to undermine this nation’s main competitive advantage of proximity.

The fee increases, unveiled as part of the Customs Management (Amendment) Regulations 2024, represent a three-fold and six-fold increase, respectively, on the previous Customs fee structure for private aviation which was $50 “inbound” and zero “outbound”.

Now, with the changes, commercial jets will have to pay a $50 “inbound” and $50 “outbound” fee for a total of $100. However, a private plane with four seats or less “including all seats in the cabin” is now faced with paying $75 each way for a total of $150.

That is slightly more than the $100 fee for a commercial jet, but private aircraft with more than four seats “including all seats in the cabin” now face having to pay $150 “inbound” and “outbound” fees to Customs for a total $300. So-called “recreational” flights will only pay $150 “inbound”, but it is unclear what this definition means and how it will be applied.

AOPA said yesterday: “General aviation is an important segment of The Bahamas’ tourism industry. According to data from the Ministry of Tourism, stopover visitors who arrive by private aviation nearly double the number of stopover visitors who arrive by private boat or arrive by cruise ships and stay at least 24 hours off ship.

“Additionally, many private aviation visitors frequent the less accessible Out Islands, providing a crucial economic boost to hotels, restaurants and activities in those areas.

“For many years, AOPA has worked closely with the Bahamian government and Ministry of Tourism to promote the country as a prime destination for general aviation travel, but the recent fees imposed on general aviation aircraft arrivals and departures will likely have the reverse impact of what the Bahamians in the Ministry of Finance intended.”