In the second installment of Robert Brady’s blog, the UAS Director of Ops has some crucial planning advice for when you touch down.
Arrival formalities
Many territories with large volumes of international visitors have adopted an electronic means of managing crew and passenger profiles including visa and passport details. Many operators will probably already be familiar with the U.S. eAPIS system. A new requirement for non-scheduled operators to the UAE is to file Advanced Passenger Information or API. This is a federal requirement and operators are responsible for ensuring crew and passenger data is filed for every operation into or out of a UAE civil airport to an international destination.
Departure formalities
Often similar in many ways to the formalities required for arrivals, allowing sufficient time to clear customs and immigration for outbound operations is recommended. Many airports have either designated facilities or the means to fast track crew from landside to airside. This will require investigation on an airport-by-airport basis and sometimes even special approval can be obtained at stricter airports known for slow immigration and security screening processes if a strong enough case can be presented in advance. Crew members using a General Declaration as part of their immigration clearance should always be in uniform with their company ID clearly displayed.
Fuel uplifts
Ensure that the fuel price quoted is reflective of the parking position of the aircraft. Many quotes are based on the assumption the aircraft will park on the main commercial apron of an airport. If your aircraft is likely to park on a General Aviation apron or a similarly remote area, check if any delivery surcharges will apply. It is also important to be aware that fuel delivery companies and into-plane agents plan their work day around scheduled operations. Therefore, many non-scheduled and general aviation operators plan to uplift fuel on arrival, rather than have the risk of fuel delivery delays on the day of departure. The decision is taken depending on the duration of stay as having large volumes of fuel in the tanks of an aircraft that is parked for an indefinite period makes it prone to leakage.
Crew care
Crew members are regularly exposed to long duty days, tough operating conditions such as poor weather on route, hard-to-please passengers and short notice schedule changes. Therefore, when they finally land they will expect to be able to go to the hotel and relax. Choosing the best hotel within your budget should only be the starting point in hotel selection. For example, can the hotel offer express check-in and check-out facilities? What extras can the crew enjoy that are included in the room rate? That breakfast is included is very important to crew, as is gym access, and free Wi-Fi. Discounts on in-house dining and laundry are also well received. Work with handling agents to streamline your crew’s process through customs and immigration and make sure that transportation always has the most up-to-date information on the crew’s arrival time.
Transportation
Always ensure the pick-up and drop-off points are known in advance, especially if you do not speak the local language. You could be mistakenly taken to the wrong one of three Hilton hotels in the city based on a simple misunderstanding. Also, planning where your crew will be dropped off and report for duty on the day of departure will ensure no unnecessary delays getting to the aircraft to prepare for departure.
Catering
Having a menu of the standard requirements that any airport catering company can provide is good practice. Many general aviation operators will often try to source catering supplies landside if the airport catering company cannot meet their requirements. In these circumstances, it’s important to check if the catering can be taken from landside to airside. The regulations on liquids for carry-on baggage can often be applied to catering taken from non-approved sources, so it is advisable to check in advance if food prepared in a hotel or local restaurant will be permitted airside and onto the aircraft before you commit to the expense. Individual requirements for galley equipment, laundry and cleaning requirements should also be checked in advance.
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Mitch Launius
Instructor Pilot for 30 West IP
Mitch is the CEO of 30 West IP where he is also an instructor providing pilot training on international procedures. With an illustrious career of over 34 years in the cockpit, Mitch has acquired over 13,000 hours of flight time flying worldwide, with over 9,000 hours of this in Challenger and Gulfstream aircraft. He is an experienced safety officer and was also an IS-BAO project manager for a fortune 500 flight department. He has presented on Safety and Operations topics at the NBAA International Operators Conference and the Canadian Business Aviation Association Convention and is currently on the NBAA International Operators Committee and serves as the North Atlantic Regional Lead. Mitch is also a member of an FAA working group on General Aviation International Authorizations and Tabletop Exercises (GIATE). He was recently selected to represent IBAC as a member of the ICAO Personal Training and Licensing Panel (PTLP) and was also recently named as a 2020 recipient of the NBAA Tony Kern Professionalism in Aviation Award for his contribution to the business aviation community.
Henry ‘Duke’ LeDuc
Director Of Operations, Americas, UAS International Trip Support
Duke has been a dearly respected member of UAS Americas team and the UAS global family for more than five years. A safety-oriented, FAA-licensed aircraft dispatcher, he oversees all of the operations of the elite UAS Operations Team. With twenty-five years of experience in aviation overall with more than fifteen years of experience in international flight planning and VVIP trip coordination, he is responsible for the development of the dispatch training program and involved in the strategic development of UAS Americas. With a myriad of rich aviation experience behind him, he has extensive experience in worldwide operations with both corporate and charter environments, including seven years as Operations/Dispatch Manager in an industry-leading, Fortune 500, IS-BAO Stage III Certified corporate flight department. Duke is frequently asked shares his knowledge at major industry events and is currently serving on the NBAA’s International Operators Conference (IOC) Planning Committee.
Dudley King
President and Founder, FlightBridge
Dudley is the Founder and President of FlightBridge, which he established in 2011 and has been focused on technology solutions for the private aviation industry since 2006. Since he graduated from Dartmouth in 1988, he has worked with an array of companies listed anywhere from VentureWire to the Fortune 100. A rare blend of executive, entrepreneur, and consultant, Dudley’s executive roles have included acting CIO positions for several companies and tech advisory services to CEOs trying to rebuild their technology organizations or looking for an external, professional point of view. Highly skilled at deeply understanding his customer’s business challenges and drawing from a long and varied experience in information technology services, Dudley excels at designing technology solutions to solve their problems.
Dr. Paulo Alves
Global Medical Director, Aviation Health, Medaire
Paulo has extensive experience in medical advisory in the aviation industry. As a cardiologist, he provides technical guidance and analysis for MedAire’s MedLink medical advisory service and is MedAire’s liaison with civil aviation regulators and industry associations. Paulo worked with Varig Brazilian Airlines for 23 years, 10 of which were spent as General Medical Manager. A member of the MedAire Medical Advisory Board, Paulo is also President of the Ibero-American Aerospace Medical Association, a member of the International Academy of Aerospace Medicine, a member of the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) Safety Committee, a Fellow of the Aerospace Medical Association (AsMA), and a Fellow of the Civil Aviation Medical Association. Throughout his illustrious career, Paulo has held industry leadership roles including Chairperson of the AsMA’s Air Transport Medicine Committee, President of the Airlines Medical Directors Association, President of the Brazilian Society of Aerospace Medicine and was a member of the IATA Medical Advisory Group from 2002 to 2006.
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