do you guys pack your heavy batteries for your lights and fly with them (and extras), or do you buy them once you arrive?
same prices & availability?

Welcome to Bonaire Talk,

I pack only the batteries I need. They are always separate from the lights, never installed. Remember, you should pack out any used batteries, as there is no place to recycle them on Bonaire.

Welcome to BT. We do the same as Tom, bring them in and pack them out. There is not a recycle point for batteries on island. Just be sure and pack batteries separate from you lights for safety reasons.
Andy & Dave

One tip which most travelers should remember is to NOT pack dive lights with the batteries IN the lights. If they accidentally get swicthed on you could be buying new stuff when the bag catches fire from the heat.

Randy, I started hearing this battery foolishness last year. Anybody ever heard of such a fire, or been the victim? I think it's all hooey. I don't think you could start a fire with an unmodified dive light if you tried all day. and if you can, you light is TOO DARN BIG. I mean, hello, is the lamp actually exposed? NO.
Untreated cotton has an ignition point of 250C, 482f. Just leave the oily rags at home.
BTW, I've taken like thirty dive trips with the batteries in the flashlights on almost every one. I suppose I might just be lucky, but I firmly believe that had this EVER happened we would have heard about it.
People spreading this twaddle have convinced my wife of this fairy tale, so I have to pretend it's real.
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

If you are really concerned about this problem, a piece of tape over one of the batteries ends in each flashlight would remove the fire hazard in one step.
I'm off to check on my UK60 cooking along in it's pile of dryer lint and rags soaked in mineral spirits.

Seb, its not foolishness. It makes perfect sense. There is a lot of energy in a battery and if it is turned to heat and has nowhere else to go (wrapped in clothes or other insulation) ... you bet.

I have not had a fire in airplane luggage but I have had a smoking stinking smoulder in dive gear from a light. The light was a high powered model, got turned on while it was well insulated surrounded by a wet suit. It was smouldering by the time I noticed. Since then, I have always been careful and removed batteries during air transport.

I have heard of this actually happening.

I have also been asked by air jamaica persomnel if I had removed batteries from equipment. Only once, but I was asked. I'll try to dig it out but the instructions for a sony video light I have state specifically that batteries should be removed before airplane transport.

Less dramatic, but I have also had contacts broken off by the vibration from a battery during a long flight. I wonder if that broken piece of metal could have then caused a short. (It didn't).

Another point ... with lower atmospheric pressure, heat is not disippated as well, and things will over heat faster than they do on the ground.

I think it is rare, probably requires the light packed in an insulating way and, of course, for it to be turned on but that combination of factors would start a fire.

Check this out. Our last trip to Bonaire in April, we were through security and in the terminal eating breakfast at our home airport when I heard my name over the intercom asking me to report back down to American's desk. When I got there, they told me they had taken the batteries out of my dive light and that I couldn't even transport them in my checked luggage. If I was going to take them with, they had to be in my carry on so I put them in my reg bag and hand carried them to Bonaire. I don't buy it - in September I'm gonna try and transport the batteries in my checked luggage; I just won't put them in the dive light.

I love when these stories get stirred up. Geoffrey I'll grant you that big lights need more care. Marcus, I carried 2-4 motorcycle batteries and a good number of C and AA cells down in 02 and in 03 in checked baggage without problem. I can't believe they paged you.

In 2003 while my luggage was being searched at Flamingo Airport prior to check in for AE flights, I was told to take the batteries out of the lights. After that trip I found this: http://www.caribinn.com/Dive%20Lights.html

Note to all:

I have not found a FAA rule or notice on this matter. After searching several airlines web sites, I have been unable to find any mention of dry cell batteries being considered a hazard in checked luggage.

My best advice is to take rechargeable battries and a multi voltage charger. We take 32 AA cell batteries to cover strobes and dive lamps. The new UK LED lamps run for 8 hours on a full beam and more on less light. I only use two lamps for night dives and or target lights. We were also just asked if we had dive lights with batteries as we checked in to return from Indonesia.

Please take your "dead" batteries off island when you leave, as well, as there is no provision/facility for recycling items such as batteries on Bonaire. You will be helping the environment, greatly, if you can take the "dead" ones home with you. Carole