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If you have traveled across the Atlantic to the United States, you may be familiar with this experience: after a lengthy flight, you feel fatigued and may have to wait in line for an hour or more to go through American immigration.
The goal of Edinburgh airport is to address this issue by conducting US border procedures for transatlantic passengers before they leave Scotland.
Pre-clearance is currently in operation at nine airports in Canada, as well as at Dublin and Shannon airports in Ireland, and the islands of Aruba and Bermuda. It is also in effect at Abu Dhabi airport in the United Arab Emirates.
To bring the facility to the UK requires a deal to be struck between American and British governments. Edinburgh airport CEO Gordon Dewar told The Independent: “We’re really confident we can have that up and running about two to three years after the signing of the agreement.”
How does preclearance function and what advantages does it offer? These are the main inquiries and responses.
What is preclearance?
Simply put, you arrive at the US departure airport, check in as usual, and pass through security. However, there is an additional check conducted by the fully staffed US Customs and Border Protection.
The personnel at the reception will admit you to the United States. After that, you board your flight and upon reaching America, you are treated as a domestic arrival. This allows you to either exit the airport or connect to another flight without going through the typical procedures.
The UK’s closest comparison to this is for those traveling from England to France. At the port of Dover, Folkestone Eurotunnel terminal, and London St Pancras Eurostar station, travelers go through French border checks and are considered to be in France before their ferry or train departure.
How would you describe your experience in Dublin?
A dedicated mini-terminal caters specifically to travelers going across the Atlantic. Based on my personal experience, it operates very efficiently. Unlike the US arrival process, where a sudden influx of 300 people from a single plane can create chaos at passport control, here there is a steady flow of people and typically very short lines.
People from other countries are drawn to the concept, resulting in a significant increase in air traffic. This is beneficial for the Irish airline Aer Lingus and Dublin airport.
Gordon Dewar, chief executive of Edinburgh airport, says he’s keen to emulate the success of the Irish capital: “If you look at what Dublin have achieved, they’ve got a similar size population to Scotland in Ireland and yet they’ve probably got about four times as much connectivity to the States and a big part of that is about Preclearance.”
Are UK airports competing to gain preclearance?
Before the pandemic, there was definitely a plan in place. Specifically, Heathrow Airport was making efforts towards this objective due to its high number of flights to the US compared to other airports in Europe. However, due to significant financial losses for airports during Covid, it seems that the interest in this goal has decreased due to the significant costs involved. Heathrow’s transatlantic flights operate in terminals 2, 3, and 5, which require duplicated facilities at each terminal.
There is not a significant desire among airlines at Manchester airport for preclearance.
London Gatwick and Edinburgh airport have the same owner, which raises the possibility of collaboration between the Scottish and English capitals despite the potential bureaucratic challenges.
When might it occur?
Instead of months, it will take years. Initially, there must be a consensus between the American and UK administrations, which may be challenging due to ongoing distractions in an election year. After signing an intergovernmental agreement, there will be additional collaboration with Customs and Border Protection and the Transportation Security Administration.
If an agreement is reached this year, you may be able to enter the US in the summer of 2027, before leaving Scotland.
Source: independent.co.uk
