Stansted nips Dubai food-fest flight in the bud.
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Stansted nips Dubai food-fest flight in the bud.
Red faces all round from a crew inbound from Dubai -
This 'ripping-the-ring out of it' incident will doubtlessly result in increased surveillance of inbound flights and their cargo.
Be careful out there.
When Customs officials approached the private jet from Dubai they suspected something fishy was going on. But standing beside the flight at Stansted’s prestigious private terminal they had no idea just what they would find. Inside was a massive haul of luxury goods including 55lb of expensive lobster and 3,300lb of valuable fresh fish. Officials from the UK Border Agency were puzzled by the apparent attempt to smuggle the edible cargo, estimated to have been worth as much as £100,000 into the country. There was also nearly 1,000lb of top quality cheese, 440lb of prime cuts of meat, 92lb of honey, 880lb of mangoes, 250 eggs and a huge quantity of milk. Officials from the UK Border Agency were puzzled by the apparent attempt to smuggle the cargo into the country. All the food – believed to be worth more than £100,000 – will be destroyed because it lacked the correct importation permits. Sources said the private jet and terminal are regularly used by members of the extensive Dubai royal family. No one was available for comment at the United Arab Emirates embassy.
Harrods Aviation Services, who handled the flight, refused to comment. A spokesman said: ‘We have strict confidentiality rules in place for our customers.’ One source said: ‘The normal procedure is to destroy the goods because they have not had the correct checks and you need a permit to bring this sort of stuff in to the UK. ‘But no-one can understand why the food needed to be carried in such luxury and through the private terminal. ‘Staff were definitely shocked to see the amount of food being carried. It is just not what you expect on a private jet.’
The private terminal at Stansted Airport sees VIPs and celebrities from around the world travel through its doors every week. They have included President Obama and the vast majority of high-profile visitors to last year’s Olympic Games. Although flights are handled by private companies, all passengers and cargo are subject to the same laws and checks as ordinary travellers. People travelling from outside Europe are not allowed to bring any meat, fish or dairy products into the country at all. In wholesale cases, importers must produce the correct paperwork and licences after completing checks with the relevant authorities. No-one was available to comment at the United Arab Emirates Embassy. A Border Force spokesman said: ‘Strict controls are in place about what goods can be brought into the UK.'Our Border Force officers work 365 days a year to prevent items being brought in without permission – including food, endangered species, counterfeit goods and drugs.’
Harrods Aviation Services, who handled the flight, refused to comment. A spokesman said: ‘We have strict confidentiality rules in place for our customers.’ One source said: ‘The normal procedure is to destroy the goods because they have not had the correct checks and you need a permit to bring this sort of stuff in to the UK. ‘But no-one can understand why the food needed to be carried in such luxury and through the private terminal. ‘Staff were definitely shocked to see the amount of food being carried. It is just not what you expect on a private jet.’
The private terminal at Stansted Airport sees VIPs and celebrities from around the world travel through its doors every week. They have included President Obama and the vast majority of high-profile visitors to last year’s Olympic Games. Although flights are handled by private companies, all passengers and cargo are subject to the same laws and checks as ordinary travellers. People travelling from outside Europe are not allowed to bring any meat, fish or dairy products into the country at all. In wholesale cases, importers must produce the correct paperwork and licences after completing checks with the relevant authorities. No-one was available to comment at the United Arab Emirates Embassy. A Border Force spokesman said: ‘Strict controls are in place about what goods can be brought into the UK.'Our Border Force officers work 365 days a year to prevent items being brought in without permission – including food, endangered species, counterfeit goods and drugs.’
Be careful out there.
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This angers me. All that food will have to be destroyed as it can't be given to, or sold on behalf of, people in need.
The arrogance and greed of some Emiratis is beyond belief. My question would be if they bribed the aircraft crew as presumably they would have known what was on board through the manifest.
The arrogance and greed of some Emiratis is beyond belief. My question would be if they bribed the aircraft crew as presumably they would have known what was on board through the manifest.
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My question would be if they bribed the aircraft crew as presumably they would have known what was on board through the manifest.
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Lucky they didn't find that ham and cheese sandwich that I took from the catering one night when we landed at Luton coming in from the US and I smuggled to the hotel to eat. 
But just to be fair, I did the same with some catering inbound to the US from the UK as well on a few occasions.
But just to be fair, I did the same with some catering inbound to the US from the UK as well on a few occasions.
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con-pilot,
You had an easier time than I did on entering the US then - they even took our (non dairy) coffee whitener when we arrived through Anchorage!
You had an easier time than I did on entering the US then - they even took our (non dairy) coffee whitener when we arrived through Anchorage!
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What drives me mad is when the Mexicans manning the CBP posts at your typical US airport of entry, demand that your uneaten crew meals also need to be trashed, regardless if you plan to absorb them in their entirety on the next leg.
...trust me to stay out of your TFR and comply with your ATC, but not to eat my crew meal??
What is the world coming to? What's next?
Supply them with the double bagged contents of your bowels on arrival? Sounds like Cape Town.
...trust me to stay out of your TFR and comply with your ATC, but not to eat my crew meal??
What is the world coming to? What's next?
Supply them with the double bagged contents of your bowels on arrival? Sounds like Cape Town.
Last edited by I.R.PIRATE; 26th Jun 2013 at 16:22.
