TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands Air Sunshine

Has anyone used them recently and any thoughts on them? Trying to get from SXM to STT and back and seeing them and Liat as the two main choices. Thanks in advance for any help and imput.

Flew 'em 29mar and 05Apr SJU EIS SJU. No problems at all. Our third rt with them, would/will do it again.

So seem reliable, professional, and good equipment? Are they pretty good about going when they are suppose to? How big are the planes?
Thanks

Like Cape Air, Cessna 402, 9 passenger.
Sometimes on island time, but always very friendly. Our trip two weeks ago we recognized one guy in SJU from our last trip in 2011

Would and will fly em again.

Thanks...I asked friends who live on St Maarten no one had heard of them or knew they flew into there, and they all have plenty of comments on LIAT. There are a few not so sunny reviews of Air Sunshine out there also, but most are from a couple of years ago, so nice to hear from someone who actually has used them and recently. Thanks again~

Used Liat in Janaury. Had a good experience. Would use them again. Not so good with even trying to book with Airsunshine. They weren't "flying" in Jan. Even went to STT airport to book. They were less than helpful.

Thanks schedule is really good all nonstops and better price on Sunshine but Liat not the best rep...not sure what we will do. Have tried to contact both with no reply from either.

Finally got a response from Liat and they do not have the non stop on Sat from STT to SXM even though it says daily on their schedule. I am still not sure what to do. Liat not the best rep and Air Sunshine I haven't heard back from which makes me nervous. Jet Blue I would have to spend the night in SJU which is not an option at this time that I want to do. I have heard from one person on here with positive reviews of Air Sunshine...anyone else out there have thoughts on them or have actually used them from SXM?
Thanks in advance.

Flew Air Sunshine in Jan/Feb 2014 from SJU to Virgin Gorda and back from Tortola to SJU. They are a great airline as long as you don't care how long you sit in the airport as they fly when it pleases them, not according to the schedule they post and that they gave you a reservation on. My suggestion: pay the extra money and fly on a more real airline such as Cape Air or Seaborne. My suggestion to Air Sunshine employees: change jobs to a better airline so you don't have to spend your days deflecting angry customers. Also, A.S. is a good carrier if you like to see your pilot texting during much of the flight rather than looking out the window for other airplanes.

Another unreg from a post months ago. Gotta wonder why?

Flew them yesterday out of virgin gorda tosan Juan. One of the worst travel experiences ever. They were an hour late and no one seemed to know anything about why and we missed our connection in San Juan. Taking us 24 extra hours to get home. Nightmare!

Return flight out of Virgin Gorda on 1/31/15. Tops anything i have ever heard or witnessed.

My wife and I arrived along with another couple at the small airport in Virgin Gorda in the B.V.I.'s at 9:40 a.m. on Saturday January 31st for our 10:30 flight. We were informed that our flight had already left and were shown the fine print on the back of the ticked that said we must arrive 90 minutes prior to departure. As we protested one of the Air Sunshine representatives informed us that they would be fined $5,000 by the FAA if travelers did not arrive prior to the 90 minute threshold. After initially indicating that there were no available seats on any of the subsequent flights departing that day, they apparently found room for us on a 12:30 flight for an additional $100 per person. We reluctantly paid the additional fee and waited.
We watched as other passengers arrived for the same flight and were also given the same story; all while passengers continued to arrive less than one half hour early for other flights and were processed without incident. As the departure time grew closer we were informed that our group would have to be split into two groups of 1 and 3 passengers as there were now two 12:30 flights. Again, we reluctantly agreed when we were assured they would both land in San Juan at the same time.
The first plane arrived which I was to depart on. As we walked to the plane I noticed there were only four other passengers. When I asked the pilot why the airline needed to split my group when this flight was not full he informed me that we were first flying to Tortola to drop off the other four passengers then pick up an additional seven for the flight to San Juan. When I protested and informed him of our connecting flight schedule he agreed to pull my luggage and let the other group clear customs with it since they would arrive first.
I arrived in Jan Juan without further incident, but quickly realized that I had somehow arrived before the rest of my party. The pilot assured me that they were in route and would be on the ground within minutes. Unfortunately as he was doing this I was in contact with my friends who were still on the ground in Virgin Gorda. They ultimately boarded the second 12:30 flight just after 2:00 p.m. They arrived at 3:00 p.m. causing all of us to miss our connecting flights. We incurred an additional full day’s expense because of the incident and were forced to adjust schedules to permit the extra day of travel.
As I walked toward customs with my pilot I asked him why our initial flight had left an hour early. He then informed me that it had actually left at 10:10 rather than the 9:30 that the other travelers at the airport had stated. I told him there was no chance the flight had actually left at 10:10 as we had been at the airport 30 minutes before that and had been in clear sight of the only runway since 9:40. He then informed me that I was mistaken and he had document the departure time. I have 6 witnesses that will attest to their individual arrival times as well as the fact the flight was gone prior to their arrival.
At its best, the flight departed with one out of seven booked passengers as a matter of convenience for Air Sunshine and at its worst was a planned effort to extort an additional $600 from its customers. I’m also extremely concerned that if falsifying FAA documents is the standard, that doctored maintenance logs may also be standard operating procedure. Needless to say, we will not be flying their airline again, but feel like these practices cannot go unnoticed.

we use them often and don't have a problem with AS at all - phone to confirm your flights 24 hours in advance so that they know you are showing up, ask how many are on the flight (won't fly with less than 4 people usually) if fewer than 4 ask if they are going to leave early or late and which flight they will consolidate. cheers Brian

Doctored maintenance logs have been a issue at air sunshine. Google them for some interesting reading.
G

We are flying Cape Air back to SJU in May -- it's about $25 more per ticket....but I feel we're more likely to have a flight to board.

They state that luggage can only be 40 lbs. Can you have a personal bag that you carryon too?

Cape Air does not fly out of VG...at least they didn't when we contacted them in January. We also contacted Air Sunshine but they claimed the scheduled flight we wanted was not flying but we could take another for 100.00 each more...No thanks!

I just booked Cape Air from VG to SJU for the morning of 5/26.....

Air sunshine allows 40lbs. That includes carryon purse etc

I did Cape Air 2 weeks ago to San Juan, with no probs

You can pay more if you luggage is over - we often fly down loaded with stuff for the villa - would rather pay AS than shipping charges