The next leg of my trip would take me into Canada. For any border crossing between the U.S. and Canada, the procedure a pilot follows is a pretty-consistent process, requiring both telephone and internet access. I managed with only internet access at some points by using Skype to make international phone calls.
1. Request permission to depart from/arrive in the U.S. via CBP's eAPIS website by submitting a manifest with details about the proposed flight, crew, and all passengers.
Yes that's right, fellow Americans, if you're flying you must receive permission to leave. The airlines do all of this on your behalf as a passenger. When I was a kid in the 80s I was well-indoctrinated to the evils of the red USSR by my schoolteachers, and I remember one of the selling points of anti-communist propaganda at the time was that Russians weren't free to leave their country without permission. My how times have changed! This requirement came online in 2009. You can find my comment against the proposed requirements published in the federal register, not that it did much good. This is probably the worst of dealing with every American border crossing.
You (or your agent) must have internet access to use the system, which can be problematic when operating in remote areas. Even with internet access, there are a number of pitfalls to the system that make it easy to screw up. Moreover, if your online session times out you're locked out for a while. If you submit a manifest with a typo you can be fined thousands of dollars.
After double-checking everything and submitting the manifest, approval should show up within a few minutes via email. About the only advice I can give here is to create and submit a manifest well before your trip, and then re-submit with the relevant details (like exact departure airport, destination, time, and time of border crossing...the stuff you figure out an hour before you go). Is this legal? I'm not sure, but it worked for me and saved some headache as when on the road, you can at least use a recently submitted manifest as a template for a new border crossing.
2. Pick an airport of entry, where customs can inspect you on arrival, and call customs in the country of arrival and tell them when and where you'll be landing.
Canada makes this simple. One toll-free number to call, they ask you a few questions, and you're set up within a few minutes. The only trick is that they may have a customs official waiting for you to land, and you must hit your ETA within +/- 15 minutes (The U.S. imposes a similar requirement). The Canadian Flight Supplement (CFS, basically a paperback with details of every Canadian airport) describes which airports have customs officers and their hours of operation. I chose Prince George, B.C. as my airport of entry. The CFS also outlines the procedure and relevant telephone numbers.
In the U.S., you must call the customs office at the desired airport of landing. The CBP website has a big guide for private fliers that lists hours of operation, and how much notice is required, along with a more abbreviated list that I printed several pages from so that I had all Alaska, Washington, and Oregon airports of entry available should I need them. The operating hours and advance notice required vary by location and some airports require you to notify them on a weekday during business hours. Weekend travelers beware.
3. File a flight plan (whether IFR or VFR) with flight services in the country of departure. The plan is opened upon (or after) takeoff with the country of departure, and then must be closed with the country of arrival, as the flight's details and responsibility of search and rescue are forwarded to the country of arrival. The flight plan need-not be closed in the country of departure after it is opened.
4. After opening the flight plan, you may be given a code by flight service to squawk for the duration of the border crossing flight. I was given a code on both crossings between B.C. and Washington, but none for between the Yukon Territory and Alaska. The code is superseded if you're talking to ATC and they direct to to squawk something else.
Update... I thought it would be good to describe what happens on arrival
5. Land close to your ETA, and locate the customs officials at the airport of entry. At both my Canadian AOEs and Bellingham, Washington on the return trip, the airports were towered. I asked the ground controller where to taxi to. In Northway Alaska... well, there isn't much going on in Northway! Just look for the SUV waiting next to the ramp, that's your man (in all seriousness, the airport has an on-field FSS and the specialist kindly directed inbound international traffic to the customs officer). This is a good time to have you and your passengers remain in or with the aircraft until met and released by the officer.
You may or may not be met by a customs officer in Canada. On my return trip, I was not. In this case, you're expected to call Canadian customs on the ground (usually a phone is nearby) and they welcome you to Canada via telephone. The CFS documents this fairly well.
On the American side, thus far in my border-crossings, I've always been met by a customs officer.
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