Wednesday newsletters always feature a hotel or flight review.
A few weeks ago, I enjoyed a holiday in St Barths, the Caribbean’s most exclusive island. You can read my trip reports here:
- Review: Air France Business Class Airbus A330 from Paris to St Martin
- Review: Winair Twin Otter flight from St Martin to St Barts (today)
- Review: Rosewood Le Guanahani St Barths
- Review: Le Sereno St Barths
- Review: Cheval Blanc St Barths
- Review: Air France Business Class Airbus A330 from St Martin to Paris
Today: Flight to St Barths (world’s most dangerous airport?)
Following my flight with Air France from Paris to St Maarten, I took a flight with local carrier Winair from St Maarten to St Barts, the Caribbean’s most glamorous island. It turned out to be one of the most memorable parts of the journey. The island hop between St Maarten and St Barts lasts just about 15 minutes, but it’s high on beauty and even higher on adrenaline because of the famously dramatic landing at Gustaf III Airport, considered one of the world’s most dangerous airports. In this blogpost, I describe what the trip was like from takeoff to touchdown (although I believe my YouTube video with the spectacular footage is more telling than this article).
Have you ever flown to St Barts? If so, what was your experience? Leave a comment.
In this article:
I made a YouTube video documenting the entire flight experience, including the thrilling landing at St Barts with cockpit view, which you can watch here:
Why is St Barts considered to be a dangerous airport?
St Barts’ Gustav III Airport is often ranked among the most dangerous airports in the world for two reasons:
- St Barts’ airport runway is only 2,119 ft (645 m) long. Consequently, only small prop planes are able to land at St Barts, as the runway is too short for even the smallest jet engined plane to land. Also, the short runway requires precise speed and descent management if pilots don’t want to risk a runway overrun (which is not unheard of at St Barts and has even been captured on camera). That said, close to St Barts is the minuscule Dutch Caribbean island of Saba, also known as the original King Kong movie island, which has a runway of only 400 m (1300 ft), making this the world’s shortest commercial airport runway.
- St Barts’ airport runway has a steep hill on one side and ends on a beach on the other side. Planes typically land in the direction of the water, meaning that aircraft descend steeply over the hilltop, with the runway beginning immediately after this slope. This approach over the hill is visually demanding, with little room for error. To further complicate things, high terrain near the airport makes missed approaches and go-arounds particularly tricky at St Barts. Most pilots will aim for a short-field landing technique at St Barts to maximize stopping distance.
Since the airport opened in 1984, there have been multiple incidents as well one accident with fatality in 2001. Following this incident, the hilltop at the end of the runway was lowered, providing pilots with a clearer view on final approach. In addition, several procedures are in place at St Barts Airport:
- Visual Flight Rules (VFR): Operations are conducted under VFR only, as there are no instrument approaches. Pilots must rely on visual landmarks and situational awareness.
- Special Qualification: Pilots must undergo special training or hold specific certifications to land at St Barts due to its difficulty.
Because of the lowering of the hilltop and because of the required pilot certifications, the airport is now regarded by experts as extremely safe.
About Winair
Winair (short for Windward Islands Airways International NV) is a government-owned Dutch regional based in St Maarten. The carrier serves destinations within the Leeward Islands group of the Lesser Antilles in the North East Caribbean with a fleet of eight aircraft:
- Three ATR 42-500s, which can seat 49 passengers
- Five DHC-6-300 Twin Otters, which can seat 19 passengers
Winair is the airline that offers the most flights to St Barts (there are dozens of flights per day between St Maarten and St Barts, and sometimes they leave just five minutes apart).
In its 60+ year history, Winair has never had a fatal accident, which is an impressive safety record, especially when considering some of the challenging airports that the airline flies to.
Transit at St Maarten Airport
For most travelers to St Barts, the starting point of their journey will be Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) on the nearby island of St Maarten, the closest major airport to St Barts. From SXM, it’s just a 15-minute flight over to St Barts. Most airlines flying to SXM have a code-share with Winair and allow you to book a journey with St Barts as final destination. However, in most cases, booking a combined journey is far more expensive than booking your international flight and the flight from SXM to St Barts separately.
- Travelers from North America can reach St Maarten via non-stop flights from Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Ft Lauderdale, Miami, New York City, Orlando, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.. There are also seasonal flights from Boston and Newark.
- Travelers from Europe can reach St Maarten via non-stop flights from Amsterdam and Paris.
Prior to my journey to the Caribbean, I remember how difficult it was to get detailed information about arriving in St Maarten and transiting to St Barts. FYI, I arrived from Paris with Air France and then took Winair (booked on a separate ticket) about two hours after arriving in SXM – and I am glad I did as I would not have made it otherwise. My Air France plane arrived 30 min late (because of traffic at SXM airport, why made us fly in a holding patterns for almost one hour) and I only waited 20 minutes before boarding my next flight with Winair. So please make sure you have at the very least two hours in between the two flights (if you have booked your tickets separately).
- If you only have carry-on luggage and you are able to get your Winair boarding pass before landing in SXM (the latter is only possible if you booked your tickets directly on the Winair website), you will not have to exit the airport and can stay in transit airside. You just proceed to the Winair transfer desk within the main terminal and go through a small security station.
- If you have checked luggage and/or you don’t have your Winair boarding pass yet, you will have to clear immigration, collect your luggage, exit the airport, re-enter the SXM airport, go to the Winair check-in counter, and go again through security, etc. IMHO, in this scenario, you should have at least three hours in between the two flights (if you have booked your tickets separately), just in case you are dealing with an unexpected flight delay or lines at the airport.
FYI, most visitors fly to the island from St Maarten, but there are also non-stop flights to St Barts from San Juan, Puerto Rico; Pointe-a-Pitre, Guadeloupe; Antigua; and St Thomas, USVI.
Flight from St Maarten to St Barts
Passengers are taken by bus from SXM’s terminal to the Winair aircraft. All Winair flights to St Barts are operated by one of the carrier’s DHC-6-300 Twin Otters. These plane have 19 seats, with the cabin arranged in a 1-2 configuration. Winair has open seating onboard, so passengers can choose whatever seat they want during the boarding process. I recommend to go for a seat in the first row: there’s no door between the cockpit and cabin, so passengers in the first row can take plenty of photos.
The flight from St Maarten to St Barts takes only 15 minutes, and it pretty uneventful, except for the nice views of St Maarten after takeoff from SXM. However, the landing at St Barts is a different story and an absolutely thrilling experience. During the approach into St Barts, the plane crosses very low over a ridge top and then descends steeply down the hill before touch down. On top of the hilltop is a small road, and during the steep descend planes often fly right over the heads of plane spotters and their cars. This is quite a view, especially when seated in the front row (with a cockpit view). To add to the excitement, the plane descends so steeply over the hill that you get a sinking feeling in your stomach. All this is followed by an abrupt stop on the runway, as the DHC-6-300 Twin Otter goes from landing speed to taxi speed in just a few seconds.
Arrival at St Barts Airport
All passengers arriving at St Barts need to clear immigration at the small but charming Gustav III Airport. The airport is named after King Gustav III of Sweden, under whom Sweden obtained the island from France in 1784 (it was sold back to France in 1878). In 1984, the Swedish Minister of Communications, Hans Gustafsson, inaugurated the terminal building of the Gustaf III Airport, and not much has changed since then. The small building has open-air check-in areas, a lounge, and a small departure room. The area around the airport is hugely popular with plane spotters though. For the best photos, you need to walk up the hill (which offers the iconic view of St Barts’ airport runway) or to the beach.
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