S.O.S.! Info on beauracracy with bringing in bird wreckage

[Fishing]

S.O.S.! I need some information on bringing bird wreckage to the US. What are the customs procedures? I have gone through an enormous adventure to rescue these parts and would like to bring them home. If you have any knowlege of how to accomplish this...or maybe the name of a customs officer... that could handle this for me, I'd love to hear about it. Unfortunately, I don't know where to begin with this process.
Thanks for all your help! Happy Halloween

[skymstr02]

Too many variables. Is the original airplane US built or foreign?
If the original airplane was loaned or sold to the country depends if it is still US property. If thats the case, then you brought the parts back to Uncle Sam, and he thanks you.
Is there armament involved?

[gary1954]

considering the way things are now.......I wish you the very best of luck in bringing home the remains......contact customs and axe them, but like skymstr02 scribbed, what took the plane to where it was? A plus going for you is hopefully the dataplate says Made in USA

Last edited by gary1954 on Sat Oct 31, 2009 12:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[tom d. friedman]

get a huge pair of sharp scissors & be prepared to use them to the point of blisters on your hands w/ all the red tape!! where did you find your recovery?? pm me if you wish. best , tom

[RMAllnutt]

If the parts are of original US manufacture, make sure that you list this, as you will not have to pay any import duty. You will probably have to pay a fee to the import house though.... for storage, customs inspection, and whatever else they might decide to invent. It shouldn't be more than a few hundred dollars though... unless you've got a huge stash of items coming in. Care to share some details/photos of what you've recovered?

Cheers,
Richard

PS. I am assuming these are WWII-era vintage parts. If they are relatively modern there may be more significant things to deal with, especially for anything armament related.

[Fishing]

Thanks to all of you for your replies. If I am lucky enough to get a container to the US I will be posting all photos right here. I'd love to tell the whole story but until things clear customs, there is no story to tell. I have a serial number...US made...currently located in Europe....no data plate....armament not an issue. Has anyone here gone through customs with a warbird wreck? How did it go through customs without Uncle Sam claiming ownership? This is not a Navy Plane. I understand that makes a difference because of their specific policies. Please reply with your best guesses on how I can accomplish this task. I'd really like to get past this stage of the game and on to the next in this oddessy!

[gary1954]

did you purcahse the remains from someone, or was this one you recovered, and was there a requirement for application/permit to the salvage?

[Fishing]

I've had ownership of it for years. Just thinking now is the time to bring it home.
Best regards

[rwdfresno]

My first thought is that a customs officer or someone from the customs office is unlikely to be as helpful as you would like.

I would contact a customs brokerage. They offer services that help you navigate the red tape when dealing with this sort of thing. We use customs brokers quite often in our company when shipping technical equipment across national borders.

Ryan

[reno]

I haven't imported as such, but i have sent a large quantity of non US made WW2 wreckage from europe to the states.

The buyer used a customs broker and had no problems, for a few hundred dollars this seems money well spent to make sure you have the best up to date knowledge of the system. It may well be cheaper at the end of the day if you do have to pay charges should you decide to do it yourself.

The parts were crated and sent at a higher cost by air, not sure if this has any effect or not.

Hope this was some help.

Ben

[Fishing]

Thanks again for all the help. I will be choosing a customs broker carefully. The additional charge is well worth knowing that I will be working with an advocate who is familliar with the process.