Off to Bon on Friday, regardless of what's happening in the middle east. I'm NOT going to wreck a vacation because of saddam or whomever, I just hope the airlines are flying. Does anybody have any current info on the airlines plans (esp. AJ) as it relates to wartime security.

BTW, I'm totally available to stay over on BON and make sure the the Dutch Antilles are secure from terrorist threats.

Looking forward to putting faces with names

joe

ok joe,

first mission - chase off some of that biomass so we can see the fishes;)

got ya on my list...if i don't make it - it's only because i'm having WAY too much fun;)

later,

but bob.......i'm not even catholic

and ur having fun working........doubt it

see ya on the bonbon

Joe -

Why is it that folks want to talk you out of a vacation to Bon just because there's probably going to be a war? They must not be divers like us who have been anticipating a nice trip for some time. Somehow the Southern Caribbean does not seem to me to be much of a political hotspot. Oh well .... also off to Bon on Friday. Starting to bounce like Bill! See ya at Gibi's next Tuesday!

Karen

karen, given your profession, i feel better about telling you all to have a great time (especially spongebob)

YOU GO JOE! Screw anybody that tells ya different. You don't go, the helots win. We were scheduled to go to Bon Sept. 15,01, and we ended up being delayed but going nonetheless on the 19th.

Go and have a great holiday !...just don't turn on the television and ruin your day....blow bubbles and then return to reality in all due time..

Can anyone tell me what size carryon you can take on DCA. I want to carryon our mask, fins,snorkel, to make sure they dont get lost. I dont need clothes on Bon but do need dive stuff. I called t he airline they said 8x14 carryon......that seems ridiculous. I wonder if this is a new security feature. The overheads surely hold more than that. I could have sworn when we flew DCA last year we took our dive stuff as carryon. Karen, which airline are you flying,,,,,,,,we arrive Sat. via Miami. We are Floridians too(Tampa).......hope to see ya at Gibis

Cindy,

Not clear if you're flying DCA from Miami to Bonaire, or just the Curacao-Bonaire leg. If it's the latter, you get to experience the joys of flying a DCA Twin Otter - 15 passengers and basically no luggage space... DCA switched to those from the Dash-8s they used between Curacao and Bonaire a few weeks ago.

If you're routed Miami to Bonaire, the plane is an MD-80, which has amply overhead space, at least down to Curacao. Not sure if they are making people change planes from Curacao to Bonaire.

Jake

Jake, flying nonstop Sat Miami to Bon. on return we go thru Curacao. The one time we flew thru Curacao we did the small plane to Bon and from w hat you say this is a smaller plane. Not looking forward to that. When I made the reservation it was supposed to be nonstop both ways. I am mostly concerned about being able to have dive stuff carryon on way to Bon. If its lost on way home dont care as much. We will check all then anyway.

DCA may fly a 'loop': MIA-BON-CURACAO-MIA or just MIA-BON-CUR (they likely service the airplane in Curacao: fuel, food, clean, etc.) so it is possible your return flight will be on an MD-80 with a deplane/replane in Curacao. In the 'old days', travel agents, at least, could look up a flight' itinerary including when you changed planes-- they may be able to do that for you now.. I am not sure I would trust DCA to tell me straight. And then, of course, there are the times they stop in Port au Prince without announcing it.

Quite likely a travel agent cannot look up the Cur-Bon section. Since they switched planes down to the Otters, the flights are no longer listed in the airline systems. The only way to book a Cur-Bon flight is calling DCA or making a res. at their website.

The MD-80 coming direct MIA-BON must go somewhere!! I was guessing it might loop or, at least, go to CUR. That part may be in the computer, if not the Otter flights. Surprised if Otters are not though-- almost all scheduled flights are. But then, it is DCA. Can't hurt to try.

The OAG was so good when I had access to the printed version at work-- not worth it to me to pay for it online now, of course.