Flying into USA

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Antique Pilot
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by Antique Pilot »

I have flown several times from the Winnipeg area to and from International Falls, Piney-Pinecreek, and Minot on wheels. Also did a few flights on floats to US Customs at Crane Lake MN and then to Sandpoint Ont for CAN Customs at the north end of Crane Lake. Usually went quite smooth and simple. Only issue I ever had was getting high enough to contact GFK radio to get a TXP code prior to crossing the border enroute Minot. Had to get to 8500’ to get GFk about 5 mins before crossing the border. About 2 months ago I flew from Park Rapids MN to Piney MB. The weather briefer told me to phone him when I was ready to start up. He gave me a TXP code over my cell phone. Very nice.

AP
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photofly
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by photofly »

No need to visit US customs on departure from the US - just file your eAPIS notification and call Canadian customs. And you can depart from anywhere you like, not just an airport.
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JasonE
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by JasonE »

One more note for those under 40 flying on a 5 year medical - it's only valid for 2 years outside of Canada under ICAO.
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by photofly »

JasonE wrote: Sun Dec 16, 2018 2:17 pm One more note for those under 40 flying on a 5 year medical - it's only valid for 2 years outside of Canada under ICAO.
I don’t think that’s correct. Check in ICAO Annex 1 1.2.5.2 which says sixty months.
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JasonE
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by JasonE »

Interesting, it states on the medical certificate "Outside of Canada - 24 months"
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by photofly »

For what category of medical? Most people don’t have a certificate, just a sticker and a stamp. And those don’t list an expiry date or validity period, you’re supposed to know.

EDIT: Oh wait, the validity periods are printed on P15 of the booklet. Mine doesn't say anything about a different period outside of Canada though. And ICAO is 60 months for PPL under 40, and 24 months over 40.
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JasonE
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by JasonE »

From the back of an original medical certificate:

Image
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by photofly »

The ICAO standard for PPL under 40 is sixty months, the validity period in Canada is sixty months, the validity period in the USA is sixty months, and my blue book says sixty months with no comment about other countries, so I'm fairly sure there's no restriction to 24 months that applies when fly cross border to the USA.
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by Taxivasion »

Regarding opening the door before an officer arrives... if it’s 30c+ and people are burning up. Open the door... you wouldn’t leave your dog in a hot car so CBP can shove it. If they give you a hard time, ask for a supervisor.

In Canada, they don’t care as long as you’re not out loading your car. Remember...what did people do before cell phones? They had to get off the plane and use a pay phone to call them...
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lhalliday
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by lhalliday »

Taxivasion wrote: Tue Dec 18, 2018 1:29 am Regarding opening the door before an officer arrives... if it’s 30c+ and people are burning up. Open the door... you wouldn’t leave your dog in a hot car so CBP can shove it. If they give you a hard time, ask for a supervisor.

In Canada, they don’t care as long as you’re not out loading your car. Remember...what did people do before cell phones? They had to get off the plane and use a pay phone to call them...
Back in Ye Olden Tymes the PIC was authorized to get out of the plane and use the payphone. Everybody else had to stay put.

...laura
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photofly
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by photofly »

I would open the door, but no way would I get out!
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AirFrame
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by AirFrame »

Regarding filing your EAPIS for departure from the US, if you know at least the day and rough time of your departure from the US, file your departure EAPIS before you file your arrival (flight into US) EAPIS. If you file the departure EAPIS from home, you don't have to find a computer and a WiFi connection to file your return flight. For departures, they don't care so much about accuracy. Arrivals when you'll have to align with customs in the US, yes, they care very much. But when you're flying back to Canada, nobody in Canada cares (or can check) what your EAPIS times are. I've used this process for both day- and weekend-trips without issue.

Obviously, if your schedule changes significantly (like you'll be coming back the next day) then file a new one with the changed info (you can't change a filed EAPIS report, you can only file a new one).

Good catch on the "assume departure" lingo, photofly. I hadn't heard about that before. Given that you have to file EAPIS, call Customs before departing the US, and that you talk to ATC to cross the border, i'd be surprised if anyone ever got in any serious trouble because their filed flight plan didn't get activated. It happens often enough that they'd be spending a *lot* of time and resources chasing people down for it with very little benefit.
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broken_slinky
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by broken_slinky »

AirFrame wrote: Tue Dec 18, 2018 11:21 pmGiven that you have to file EAPIS, call Customs before departing the US, and that you talk to ATC to cross the border, i'd be surprised if anyone ever got in any serious trouble because their filed flight plan didn't get activated. It happens often enough that they'd be spending a *lot* of time and resources chasing people down for it with very little benefit.
If you look at the CADORs for Windsor, you'll see that there's a lot that pertain to "failing to activate flight plan for trans-border travel". Worst trouble I've heard a pilot getting is being told, in a stern voice, to remember to activate the flight plan.
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ahramin
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by ahramin »

Lots of ZBB CADORs as well about crossing the border without an active flight plan. You get a phone call from enforcement but I've never seen it go farther than that. Not something I would want to fool around with though, it's not that hard to figure out a way to activate your flight plan.
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AirFrame
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by AirFrame »

ahramin wrote: Wed Dec 19, 2018 11:04 am Lots of ZBB CADORs as well about crossing the border without an active flight plan. You get a phone call from enforcement but I've never seen it go farther than that. Not something I would want to fool around with though, it's not that hard to figure out a way to activate your flight plan.
It really depends on the day and the routing. I flew back from the Arlington, WA fly-in one year, and couldn't get Seattle FSS to talk to me before I was close enough to ZBB that I wanted to call them before entering their zone. If that was a flight from BLI to ZBB, I would have been circling for 30 minutes waiting for my turn... Then i'd miss my customs arrival window and risk annoying the CBSA agents.

I'd rather have a call from TC where I explain that I asked for "assume departure" and that didn't work, than explain to a CBSA agent why I was late.
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ahramin
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by ahramin »

A good point AirFrame. Sometimes despite all our best efforts we have to make a decision that's going to leave someone unhappy. I definitely agree that border crossing rules are way less important that customs arrival rules. Airplanes, especially VFR ones, just don't work on tight schedules.
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Blaine Beaven
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by Blaine Beaven »

Resurrecting this thread from the ashes. I’m heading down to North Dakota this week to drop off a plane for some American buyers.

Any updates to changes post-Covid, or ADSB wise? The aircraft is not ADSB equipped, but the airport I am delivering to is Class D and not under a Class C veil, and I won’t need to transit any ADSB airspace as far as I can tell.

Thanks in advance!

Anti
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nbinont
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by nbinont »

Blaine Beaven wrote: Tue Dec 12, 2023 8:45 am Any updates to changes post-Covid, or ADSB wise? The aircraft is not ADSB equipped, but the airport I am delivering to is Class D and not under a Class C veil, and I won’t need to transit any ADSB airspace as far as I can tell. -Anti
->Stay below 10000ft, avoid class A, class B (and above), class C (and above), and mode C veil.

If there's even a remote chance you need to go into those airspaces, fill the following form out the night before: https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/technol ... adsb/adapt so you can get into the airspace without the required equipment. Then go fly. ATC can always authorize deviations in the air, but prefers to have a notice with that form.
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Blaine Beaven
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by Blaine Beaven »

nbinont wrote: Tue Dec 12, 2023 3:54 pm
->Stay below 10000ft, avoid class A, class B (and above), class C (and above), and mode C veil.

If there's even a remote chance you need to go into those airspaces, fill the following form out the night before: https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/technol ... adsb/adapt so you can get into the airspace without the required equipment. Then go fly. ATC can always authorize deviations in the air, but prefers to have a notice with that form.
Thanks!! This confirms what I was reading but wanted to make sure I wasn’t missing something :)
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Re: Flying into USA

Post by Cessna 180 »

When you make first contact with ground (or if they have clearance delivery, call them), tell them VFR flight following to Cxxx and an altitude. If it's a non-primary airport without a tracon, they will call flight data, make you a strip, and get you a code. the assumed departure time works well, but if you file on foreflight, you can click "activate" before you leave (if you have data).
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