BigShip

Hi,
would like to know if it is possible for you to take a jumpseat to china on a freighter.

In my company it is possible on the pax flights but not on the freighters.. ?

Would like to know, if it is handled the same way at different airlines.

Thx..

BigJoeRice

Did it in 2000 into HKG and TPE on one of our 747 freighters and didn't have any problems in or out. They checked me through as a regular passenger and picked me up at a gate for the ride to the cargo area with a badged employee. The only problem on the whole trip was going back into NRT; the Japanese didn't want to let me back in because I was on an US registered aircraft with an American operating crew in uniform, and I was the lone Brit traveling on a UK passport and in civvies. My Captain had to put his cap back on and inform the immigration people that I was one of his crew, and that I would be going ashore with the rest of his crew - and I did. I would imagine that nowadays with all the security it might be a tad more complicated.

GlueBall

Always OK if you're a company pilot, in uniform, and listed on GenDec as xtra crew.

Intruder

We do it all the time. Gotta have a Crew visa and jumpseat or operate out, too...

BigShip

Thanks for all the infos, but I was thinking about my son or a friend of mine.
I can not put him on the GENDEC and he is not crew definetely :-)

Maybe there is a chance to convince the authorities to be not so hard on us, as almost all other countries.

ea-eu

Hi BigShip.
Definitely do not think about your son or a friend on a freighter to China.
I personally had serious problem with the Chinese authorities when I landed at PVG jumpseating on "my" airline freighter. The Captain and our Chinese rep. get crazy with immigration officers and finally to convince them to let me "enter" in China, they had to declare that I was travelling as loadmaster without uniform. And note that I was listed in the GenDec and that I have a valid Chinese Visa...

DBate

Jumpseating into China on a freighter is possible when doing so on duty - you are then usually listed on the GenDec.

Doing so while on private travel (as passenger i.e.) is not possible. China is saying that being a freighter we do not have any traffic rights to carry passengers. That's why they will refuse to let you in. Hong Kong is an exception though.

Regards,
DBate

L-38

I think not! . . . I was personally detained for not having proper documentation when arriving in mainland China by freighter (proper crew visa), and our arrival at the time, was only for tech stop purposes (no one was deplaning at that station). . . . A $2,000 fine was the answer - paid for by the company.

Be warned from personal experience, the mainland Chinese border guard's take their job's very seriously (HKG or TPE no problem, however).

JohnGalt

For fellow crewmembers who want to J/S into Red China on a freighter aircraft.

I fly for Polar. As most know, we fly into Beijing and Shanghai on a daily basis. Allow me to present an “unfortunate experience” I that I was personally involved.

I was scheduled to fly a roundtrip turn, Seoul—Shanghai—Seoul. A pilot from UAL showed up and requested to J/S with us to Shanghai. No problem (so we thought at the time). The company had cleared him, put him on the GenDec, I checked his passport to ensure he had a PRC visa (he did) and off we blasted to Shanghai.

As any freighter pilot into PRC knows, the first thing the Chinese gendarmes do when you block in is collect the passports and then run off to some back office somewhere for an hour or so to do their thing. No one can leave the plane until these folks return with your passport and give their okay.

Unfortunately, the Chinese gendarmes were not happy campers when they returned. They denied entry to our UAL J/S’er. Reason----even though he was listed on the GenDec, he did not have a “CREW” type visa. He had only a “TOURIST” type visa. Read “L (tourist)” vice “C (crew)” visa.

After two hours of haggling, I was told that this J/S’er was being denied entry and that he would leave Shanghai with us on our return flight to Seoul.

Now, your going to love this, the Chinese gendarmes said that this J/S’er could return and enter China, if he flew as a passenger on a commercial flight since he had a valid “tourist” visa, but he could not enter China as a J/S’er on a freighter aircraft because he did not have a valid “crew” visa.

Sadly, we took the UAL J/S’er back to Seoul. Good news was that Polar Ops so informed our Seoul people as to the situation and booked him a seat on a Korean pax flight to Shanghai that left 2 hours after our arrival back into Seoul. So this gent spent his day flying ICN-PVG-ICN-PVG.

For freighter pilots who have a J/S’er wanting to go to PRC-----Look at their passport, find the Chinese visa, and make sure the visa is coded “C,” not “L.” Remember, “C” is crew, “L” is tourist. A J/S’er listed on the crew GenDec with a “L” Chinese visa is not going to have pleasant time upon arrival in the PRC.

I have no clue as to how the Chinese gendarmes would react if a non-pilot (ie, son, friend, etc) showed up in the PRC on a freighter without a “C” Chinese visa. I can only imagine that it would not be good.

I also cannot speak as to how the Chinese gendarmes would react to J/S’ers on non-USA freighters, nor how they would react to J/S’ers on USA or non-USA pax carriers. Maybe, a UAL or American or BA or Air France pilot who flies into the PRC on a regular basis can respond and shed some light as to what the procedures for entry into the PRC are for J/S’ers on pax flights.

Hope this helps.