A Flight Simulator Odyssey

by Charles Gulick

Land of Legends

Chart: Miami
Title: LAND OF LEGENDS
En Route Coordinates:
   Aircraft: N9876, E20659
   Tower: N9748.7605, E20744.050
Altitude:
   Aircraft: 1500
   Tower: 17
Heading: 152
Time: Daylight

That big island on your chart that looks like an overshoe is Andros, the largest of the Bahama Islands. And I wouldn't miss flying down its east coast to Congo Town Airport on a bet. Just proceed VFR, and follow the coastline.

Andros is one of the least-explored of the Out Islands of the Bahamas because so much of it is swampland. It's actually composed of three large islands and numerous small ones, covered in part with forests that teem with bird life. Three major waterways, North Bight, Middle Bight, and Southern Bight, separate the islands. Middle Bight, which you'll be over a few minutes into your flight, is the site of AUTEC, the Atlantic Underwater Test and Evacuation Center run by the U.S. Navy with the cooperation of Great Britain and the Bahamas government.

Tourists (Christopher Columbus is regarded as the Bahamas' first, having landed on San Salvador in 1492) enjoy ocean, lake, and river sports, and bone and deep-sea fishing outside the coral reefs.

Continue down the shoreline, and you can't miss Congo Town. First you'll see what appears to be a high rise (of all things) on the shore, and before long you'll spot the airport. Elevation is 15 feet, and Runway 10 is the active. So plan accordingly.

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