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Flying to Panama, Central America

logansc

Well Known Member
Does anyone on the forum fly to Panama on occasion? I'd like to hear what the better/best routes are; around the Caribbean or down through Mexico? Best places to stop, best time of year, concerns, bureaucratic considerations, etc...

Thanks!


Lee...
 
I'll be watching this thread as I've had some interest in doing a flight to Costa Rica. I have friends there.
I had considered launching from Key West but am a bit tentative going over water to Cozumel. I can handle the Bahamas & KeyWest as it's only 100 miles.
 
Since I go direct from the west coast without stopping I can't provide you any guidance on places to stop, routings etc. I will say that working with the Panamanian Controllers, Customs etc etc is very straight forward. Every now and then I have encountered trouble contacting Cenemar (Center over the Guatemala El Salvador Hoduras etc area) but they eventually hear you. Unless you are both fluent en Espanol and the paperwork details of international flight planning I would suggest using a handling service. There is no doubt that it can certainly be done without one but you will probably find from the sheer hassle factor alone it is worth the money.
 
Mexico ???

I mentioned to my wife about flying to cancun and then to costa rica. She thinks we will get kidnapeed by the mexican drug cartel while we are getting fuel in Mexico.

I know driving through mexico is not an option. I know several mexican nationals from the Houston area that would not even drive through mexico right now.

I vacation in cancun regularly. Does not seem to be a problem in the resort areas.
 
Flying to Central America

I have flown to Central America several times in my experimental airplane and LOVED IT! It takes a bit more planning than flying in the US but other than that it isn't a big deal. My last flight was all the way to Panama City, Panama and enjoyed the trip there.

When we (wife & I) make these trips, I fly while my wife takes pictures and writes about it. You can read some of the stories at our web page www.puertoricoflyer.com under the "Adventures" page.

You can also send me a PM and I will answer your questions as best I can.

I mentioned to my wife about flying to cancun and then to costa rica. She thinks we will get kidnapeed by the mexican drug cartel while we are getting fuel in Mexico.

I know driving through mexico is not an option. I know several mexican nationals from the Houston area that would not even drive through mexico right now.

I vacation in cancun regularly. Does not seem to be a problem in the resort areas.

Flying through Mexico from North to South isn't a big deal. Going to Costa Rica would be fun too. I am in Houston too and fly to the Caribbean every year in December.

I'll be watching this thread as I've had some interest in doing a flight to Costa Rica. I have friends there.
I had considered launching from Key West but am a bit tentative going over water to Cozumel. I can handle the Bahamas & KeyWest as it's only 100 miles.

From Key West to Cozumel you fly off the Cuban coast and can glide there in an emergency. It is about 100mi from the west coast of Cuba to Cozumel, about the same as from Miami to the Bahamas.

:cool:
 
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...I have encountered trouble contacting Cenemar (Center over the Guatemala El Salvador Honduras etc area) but they eventually hear you.

You mean Cenamer, as in short for Central America center? I don't mean to nitpick, but it drives me nuts when guys contact center down there and pronounce it ceneMAR. I've never heard the area called Central Amarica, nor the US the United States of Amarica; sorry, it just sounds kinda silly when pronounced like that...
 
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I've looked at a proposed route over the Gulf from Key West to Cancun/Cozumel and it looks a bit daunting, but certainly doable. From there I was thinking Beliz, La Mesa, Tegucigalpa, Managua, Santamaria, and on to David. From South Carolina it looks like 9 hours or so and helpfully, under two hours from Key West to Cozumel. I'm a ways away, next summer at the earliest, but I would love to hear from anyone who's made the trip.


Thanks,


Lee...
 
I've looked at a proposed route over the Gulf from Key West to Cancun/Cozumel and it looks a bit daunting, but certainly doable. From there I was thinking Beliz, La Mesa, Tegucigalpa, Managua, Santamaria, and on to David. From South Carolina it looks like 9 hours or so and helpfully, under two hours from Key West to Cozumel. I'm a ways away, next summer at the earliest, but I would love to hear from anyone who's made the trip.


Thanks,


Lee...

I have done the trip several times and enjoyed the adventure. I flew from St Simons Island GA to as far down as Panama City, Panama. PM me if you want to talk about ways to do the trip and have fun doing it. :cool:
 
want to hear much more

we too plan to go to panama, hopefully next year. our trip will begin in texas, and politics permitting would include stopovers in Veracruz, Mexico; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Liberia, Costa Rica, and then to destination Panama City. the fewer stops the better. given the time, the flying should be a piece of cake; the paperwork and bureaucracies at each stopover are probably the biggest challenges, esp for a VFR only flight.
 
Flight to Panama

we too plan to go to panama, hopefully next year. our trip will begin in texas, and politics permitting would include stopovers in Veracruz, Mexico; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Liberia, Costa Rica, and then to destination Panama City. the fewer stops the better. given the time, the flying should be a piece of cake; the paperwork and bureaucracies at each stopover are probably the biggest challenges, esp for a VFR only flight.

The last time I did this trip (2010) I went along the east coast of Mexico. I went from Houston via Brownsville, Tx; Tampico, Mx; Veracruz, Mx; Tapachula, Mx; San Salvador, El Salvador; Liberia, Costa Rica; Panama City, Panama. This way you get over the mountains between Veracruz and Tapachula at a reasonably low altitude. :cool:
 
let me know...

...if you decide to do a repeat of that trip and if you want company. all i'd need to do would be get valid insurance, some vinyl larger numbers and (maybe) a 406 transponder and i'd be ready to fly your wing. i'd prefer fewer stops, but having company on the trip esp the first time would be a big plus. mine is a -9, could make some longer legs than you mention.
 
I know the Chartis / AIG policy territory includes "Central America" which is very handy if you plan to go to more than Mexico. The others are just Mexico and most don't want to fool with adding additional territory, but you can always ask. Adjusting claims in foreign countries is more difficult.

Those extra Mexican Insurance policies are no longer necessary as long as your Policy Territory shows Mexico (and nearly all do). You just need to document that on arrival.

My Mother retired in Costa Rica 20 years ago, but I've never flown down there myself. Bucket list item I guess.

Tj
 
I know the Chartis / AIG policy territory includes "Central America" which is very handy if you plan to go to more than Mexico. The others are just Mexico and most don't want to fool with adding additional territory, but you can always ask. Adjusting claims in foreign countries is more difficult.

Those extra Mexican Insurance policies are no longer necessary as long as your Policy Territory shows Mexico (and nearly all do). You just need to document that on arrival.

My Mother retired in Costa Rica 20 years ago, but I've never flown down there myself. Bucket list item I guess.

Tj

I just checked my Chartis policy & it had a "Mexico Warning Statement".
Basically, it said explicitly that I am not covered and that my passengers & I could be jailed and my aircraft taken away. Yikes:eek:
My renewal is due 4/1/13. I will make sure that they include coverage for Mexico before I make any attempt to fly through there.

WooHoo!! This is my 1000 post.
 
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I just checked my Chartis policy & it had a "Mexico Warning Statement".
Basically, it said explicitly that I am not covered and that my passengers & I could be jailed and my aircraft taken away. Yikes:eek:
My renewal is due 4/1/13. I will make sure that they include coverage for Mexico before I make any attempt to fly through there.

Dan,

My Chartis policy read the same way when we were getting ready to fly to Baja. Jenny at Nationair told me that Chartis was using up their old printed policies, and she sent me a new page including Mexico. She even included a page translated to Spanish for the federales.

Jim Berry
RV-10
 
...if you decide to do a repeat of that trip and if you want company. all i'd need to do would be get valid insurance, some vinyl larger numbers and (maybe) a 406 transponder and i'd be ready to fly your wing. i'd prefer fewer stops, but having company on the trip esp the first time would be a big plus. mine is a -9, could make some longer legs than you mention.

We (wife& I) are thinking about doing this flight again sometime this or next year. If we do I will let everyone on this board know. I don't have an RV, mine is a KIS4 (www.puertoricoflyer.com). The airplane has significantly longer range, but I have a short range bladder. :cool:
 
I just checked my Chartis policy & it had a "Mexico Warning Statement".
Basically, it said explicitly that I am not covered and that my passengers & I could be jailed and my aircraft taken away. Yikes:eek:
My renewal is due 4/1/13. I will make sure that they include coverage for Mexico before I make any attempt to fly through there.

WooHoo!! This my 1000 post.

Dan,

My Chartis policy read the same way when we were getting ready to fly to Baja. Jenny at Nationair told me that Chartis was using up their old printed policies, and she sent me a new page including Mexico. She even included a page translated to Spanish for the federales.

Jim Berry
RV-10

Mine read the same way and my broker told me the same thing about the old printed forms. He also sent me the updated pages with the correct wording. Chartis insurance will not be a problem in Mexico & Central America. :cool:
 
Mine read the same way and my broker told me the same thing about the old printed forms. He also sent me the updated pages with the correct wording. Chartis insurance will not be a problem in Mexico & Central America. :cool:

I will make sure that is specified on my renewal.
Thanks for the heads up.
 
Does anyone on the forum fly to Panama on occasion? I'd like to hear what the better/best routes are; around the Caribbean or down through Mexico? Best places to stop, best time of year, concerns, bureaucratic considerations, etc...

Thanks!


Lee...

Hi Lee, I now live in Panama (since 2009) and we are in the beautiful mountains just north of the Chame airport, about 50 miles west of Panama City. I would love to meet you and see your plane when you're down here. Also a friend of mine lives on that airport and has built an awesome NXT with a TSIO-720. He's also built several Glasairs and would likely love to see your Rocket as well.

I would gladly trade a night or two in our guest house for a ride in your plane, plus it would be nice to have someone around to talk RVs with. You can stay longer for a modest rent too if you want. You can see our place here.

This invitation extends to any RVator that flys to Panama!
 
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Mine read the same way and my broker told me the same thing about the old printed forms. He also sent me the updated pages with the correct wording. Chartis insurance will not be a problem in Mexico & Central America. :cool:

My agent just told me it's an extra $250 to include Mexico on my Chartis policy.
Have things changed recently?
 
Flying to Costa Rica

Hi guys, thanks for all the information posted on flying to Central America. I'm looking at moving down to Costa Rica for the winter and possibly flying the Rocket down from Canada late this fall. I think the flight would be a great adventure going down through Florida .... and I haven't determined the rest yet however Cozumel and down sounds interesting. If anyone else is interested for part of the journey we would love another aircraft to join us. We're IFR equipped and rated but would plan it based on VFR for the most part once we get south of the cold weather :)

Cheers
 
Scott,

My wife and I are interested in flying our -10 to Costa Rica and vicinity. We are IFR, WSI weather(which I think works throughout the Americas). Keep us posted.

Jim Berry
RV-10
 
Costa Rica

Thanks Jim, my wife and I would love the company. So far were thinking of leaving in either Septmber or October. We will definitely keep you posted.

Cheers,
 
Thanks Jim, my wife and I would love the company. So far were thinking of leaving in either Septmber or October. We will definitely keep you posted.

Cheers,

Sept & October, I believe are still the rainy season. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but Panama gets the most rain in Oct. Costa Rica would as well.

I was thinking Jan/Feb.
Please all, chime in.
 
Great thought Dan. We're trying to balance leaving before its too cold here while keeping in mind weather farther South. I look forward to hearing some thoughts on the best time. It's a good thing we won't be on a schedule in any event :)

Cheers,
 
Hi Lee, I now live in Panama (since 2009) and we are in the beautiful mountains just north of the Chame airport, about 50 miles west of Panama City. I would love to meet you and see your plane when you're down here. Also a friend of mine lives on that airport and has built an awesome NXT with a TSIO-720. He's also built several Glasairs and would likely love to see your Rocket as well.

I would gladly trade a night or two in our guest house for a ride in your plane, plus it would be nice to have someone around to talk RVs with. You can stay longer for a modest rent too if you want. You can see our place here.

This invitation extends to any RVator that flys to Panama!

Sylvain, Sent you a PM
 
we also have a couple of places in panama...

we are only there a few weeks a year until wife retires, so we could help with cheap places to stay most of the time. i also would like to take our -9 down there and back someday, but it might be longer than we originally thought, esp if we have to do it thru mexico. i am a bit more leery of mexico than i used to be... overwater single engine scares me less than latin american bureaucracies!
 
Nann & I will be in Panama 2/11-2/21.
It would be great to meet up with any RV builders or pilots while we're there.
I'd be happy to pay for fuel & lunch for an RV ride.
Would be interesting to talk RV in Panama.

Eventually, I'd like to fly my 7 to Costa Rica & Panama. I have friends living in Costa Rica.
 
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