May 29, 2019
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will introduce an out-of-hour’s preclearance service at Ireland’s Shannon Airport (SNN) beginning June 1.
“The Preclearance Field Office continues to look for new and innovative ways to provide a secure and efficient transborder process for our closest international partners,” said Clint Lamm, director preclearance said. “There have been requests for CBP to provide enhanced services for business travelers, so we are very pleased that our longstanding relationship with Shannon Airport will once again allow us to deliver.”
Currently U.S. preclearance in Shannon Airport operates from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, but the airport will now be able to extend these hours and offer an out-of-hours service to customers when required. The extended hours of operation will initially be available between 8-9 a.m. and 5-9 p.m.
“This is a very welcome development as it will allow us to extend our U.S. preclearance service for both our commercial and in particular our business aviation operators,” said Andrew Murphy, managing director of Shannon Airport.
Shannon Airport was the first airport in Europe to offer U.S. preclearance services for commercial carriers, initiated in 1986, and subsequently the first in the world to offer full preclearance for business aircraft since 2010.
“We are very pleased to see the additional hours added to Shannon Airport preclearance to help facilitate our member’s needs when returning to the U.S. Business aircraft provide companies with the flexibility to set their own schedules and this additional capability at Shannon allows a full business day in Europe before returning home.” said Sarah Wolf, NBAA’s senior manager, security and facilitation. “Pre-clearing in Shannon also improves efficiency by limiting additional stops after a long oceanic flight back to the U.S.”
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.