Your first ever landing ?

Speakeasy

Speakeasy

SBH Member
Let’s stick aside all the recent COVID doom and gloom....

Let’s bring some good vibes back, it’s been said you never forget the first time you land on the island, let’s hear your first experience. When was it, where did you stay, what did you get upto and what was your thoughts upon leaving (if you ever really left haha)

:D
 
In 2014, after three days in St Martin, we flew out of Grand Case on SBC. Chatted with another couple on the flight over, so we never had much of a chance to be nervous. Landing was over the hill and so quick, there wasn't really time to be scared. For the next week, we stayed in a villa on the hill above the pharmacy in St Jean. First meal was a walk down to Hideaway, where we enjoyed a greeting by Andy, a pizza and the "endless" carafe of Rhum. Leaving was sad, but we quickly booked the following year, although we have shifted over to Flamands. Been back every year, but 2020. Those deposits and flights were deferred to later this year and hoping that it all works out.
 
My first flight was for my honeymoon this past November during COVID times and after we had to cancel our wedding earlier in the year and our honeymoon to St Barths.

We finally made it! After so many of our flights were cancelled, rescheduled, we made it! Mask on, super hot in the winair, over the hill I can see how stunning the island was. Once we landed I already felt a bit nauseous as I get motion sickness quite easily and spent the entire day and night sick but it adds to a great memory I suppose :laughing-cry:
 
January 1985..we think it was Winair...pilot warned us ahead of time about the approach...quite exhilarating...to this day the landing still takes my breath away....much alcohol always helps...can’t wait to do it again someday
 
Honeymoon 2001. Landed too late for the last flight and had to take the ferry.

Always felt cheated but have never taken the ferry since. Would rather stay the night on SXM.

That said, we've landed over the hill, backwards, whatever. It's the most overhyped landing in avaition history.

IMHO.
 
November 1990. I was well aware of the landing, husband not so much - he's the opposite of a nervous flyer, but even so, was funny to see his reaction! We stayed at what was then El Sereno Beach Hotel and rented a mini moke for a portion of our stay. We had an amazing time but it was 10 years before we returned again (move to and back from London, three kids, two US homes...later), and then had a run of about 15 years of visits. Haven't been since 2014, were supposed to have returned last April, but now are looking at November 2021 with fingers crossed.
 
I flew over from Anguilla for the day. We landed from the beach towards the hill and at the end of the runway there were three lovely topless ladies sipping drinks and waving at the plane. I was hooked.
 
June 1986. Exhilarating and I still have nail marks in my arm from where Cheryl dug in...one of the marvelous experiences of life.
 
April 1978. No electricity on the island from midnight to early morning. “Cars” were Mokes . . . and when passing one another at night, drivers dimmed headlights to parking lights as a courtesy. Arrival, after a bumpy taxi ride from SXM, was via St. Martin’s Grand Case airport on an airline for which the initials were WIA, known locally as “When It Arrives.” The SBH “terminal” was a small building across from the present one, with only a single check-in counter. A short white-picket fence marked the area where a gendarme checked passports . . . the “waiting room” was a few primitively-constructed benches under the broadly spread branches of a nearby tree that’s still there. We were greeted by Roger Lacour, half of an early island “power couple,” a founder of Sibarth with his lovely, very pretty wife, Brook. It was magicical . . . as it continues to be today.
 
My first wasn't as memorable for me as my first with kids. They were 10 & 12 and Winair and other passengers were kind enough to allow them to sit behind the pilots so they could have great views. Pretty pointless given they "white knuckled" it the entire flight with eyes closed :) They deny it now as we prepare to return and they talk about can't wait for the flight. I am looking forward to how they view it at 15 & 17.
 
Honeymoon 1994. Didn’t know anything about St. Barts. Complete tabula rasa. Everything was booked by that elusive creature now called a travel agent. Candidly I don’t recall anything about the flight from SXM. Pre WWW days so we didn’t know what to expect. Main thing I remember about the flight was that the airport was open air and how empty in comparison to today that St. Jean was. One of my fondest memories of the time is driving a moke (manual at the time) around roads that made us feel as though we were on a roller coaster. It was such a blast. I think that if the only rentals available were manual mini-mokes, there would be far less traffic because there would be far fewer visitors. Most people I know couldn’t drive a manual these days up a hill without FORB and YOLOMO (my made up acronym for fear of rolling backwards followed by you’re only living once maybe over).
 
About 25 yrs ago on whatever OJ was, not Winair yet about that # of passengers, nor St Barth Commuter. Warned about Gate 10 at SXM by someone, & read about in some source. As a former fearful flyer in my late 30's, I had all my tricks ready for the swoop down. Back in the mid 70's I had flown from SXM to Saba so knew what to expect with small plane & an OMG kind of landing. SBH 1st flight & landing was exciting, now more difficult for me after the time the WM plane with 19 psgrs bobbled to the right just before the runway & I screamed. Have switched to SJU & Tradewind. Never the ferry or will we.
 
Airline code OJ was Air St Barthélémy. It, Air St Martin, Air Guadeloupe, and Air Martinique all merged to become Air Caraibes back around 2000.
 
Kevin you are the man ! OJ only flew once to & from, then Winair to Tradewind. We have not had good experiences flying into & connecting via SXM.
 
cec1 said:
April 1978. No electricity on the island from midnight to early morning. “Cars” were Mokes . . . and when passing one another at night, drivers dimmed headlights to parking lights as a courtesy. Arrival, after a bumpy taxi ride from SXM, was via St. Martin’s Grand Case airport on an airline for which the initials were WIA, known locally as “When It Arrives.” The SBH “terminal” was a small building across from the present one, with only a single check-in counter. A short white-picket fence marked the area where a gendarme checked passports . . . the “waiting room” was a few primitively-constructed benches under the broadly spread branches of a nearby tree that’s still there. We were greeted by Roger Lacour, half of an early island “power couple,” a founder of Sibarth with his lovely, very pretty wife, Brook. It was magicical . . . as it continues to be today.
Click to expand...

“ah, I remember it well” .

We do share the memory of the old airport “terminal”.......but instead of being met by Roger Lacour, it was Mr. Ledee himself. Actually, I recall Roger had red flags on a map at his real estate office of Pointe Milou in anticipation of future development by, if my memory is serves me well, by the Rothschilds.

“Ah, the good old days”
 
1998. Pretty scary, as the first time, for all the reasons we know. BUT, it was nothing compared to Saba. There the "airport" is on a projection dangling off the edge of a cliff. The approach involves a steep bank to the left avoiding what looks like the vertical cliff you are about to slam into.
Like dropping onto an aircraft carrier parked in the Yosemite Valley.
 
Leonardmtl said:
“ah, I remember it well” .

We do share the memory of the old airport “terminal”.......but instead of being met by Roger Lacour, it was Mr. Ledee himself. Actually, I recall Roger had red flags on a map at his real estate office of Pointe Milou in anticipation of future development by, if my memory is serves me well, by the Rothschilds.

“Ah, the good old days”
Click to expand...

Yes . . . I agree -- "good old days," but I'm still grateful to be here . . . whatever has changed!
 
Dennis said:
Honeymoon 2001. Landed too late for the last flight and had to take the ferry.

Always felt cheated but have never taken the ferry since. Would rather stay the night on SXM.

That said, we've landed over the hill, backwards, whatever. It's the most overhyped landing in avaition history.

IMHO.
Click to expand...

You had a classic line about this a few years ago. Something about it being the most overhyped and underwhelming thing since a first sexual experience. Your version was more eloquent and succinct though!
 
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