Regional Affairs

Rep. Graves says customs proposal costly, impractical

Requiring general aviation pilots to submit arrival, departure, and passenger manifest information to customs via the Internet before flying won't work, Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) recently wrote to Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff. In order to comply with the proposed rule, pilots might be forced to fly from their departure airport to a different location with Internet access to file the necessary information. "This would be extremely burdensome, costly, and impractical for pilots attempting to return to the United States from a remote location abroad," Graves wrote. He also requested that the Department of Homeland Security justify why the information could only be submitted electronically.

November 23, 2007