A customs proposal that would require general aviation pilots flying internationally to submit flight information and passenger manifests online before entering or leaving the USA presents serious problems for the GA community, according to the US Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA).
The Washington DC-based trade body is calling on the US Customs and Border Protection to extend its comment period from 60 to 120 days to allow "the GA community, which will be significantly impacted by this rule, an adequate opportunity to comment", says Andy Cebula, AOPA executive vice-president of government affairs.
The proposed rule would require all GA pilots flying out of or into the USA, to file a passenger manifest with customs via the internet one hour before taking off. That manifest would also have to be checked against terrorist watch lists.
AOPA says the rule, which would only allow manifests to be submitted online, creates major obstacles for pilots departing remote airfields with limited telephone and internet service.
Similarly, false hits against the terrorist watch lists would present significant challenges for pilots trying to resolve the problem from remote areas, AOPA says.
"Extending the comment period is essential to provide the general aviation community the opportunity to develop possible alternatives to address specific concerns within the rule such as the proposed electronic-only submission of passenger and other data to customs prior to border-crossing flights," Cebula says.
Source: Flight International
