ForeFlight, the iPad flight planning and electronic flight bag app, keeps getting better and better.

Recent improvements include better zooming on charts, a drag-your-finger ruler, and my favorite: the ability to share your flight plan and screen shots with friends via email and Twitter.

Here’s an example of the Twitter share feature. I’ll be using it on my own Twitter account (@southbaypilot) when I am flying an interesting trip. Feel free to share yours too! (use hashtag #ForeFlight)

Fly safe,
Greg

Flying across the international border was a breeze. Enjoying a holiday weekend in a luxury oceanfront condo in Puerto Peñasco (Rocky Point) Mexico was fantastic. And knowing that private flights to Mexico are still ‘no problemo’ is good news for all GA pilots.

Here’s how I did it.

1. File an eAPIS manifest for your departure at least 60 minutes prior to flight. Receive clearance to leave the USA via email.

2. File a second eAPIS manifest for your return (before you leave the USA). Receive a second email clearance to return on a future date. You’ll have to guess the time of arrival at this point.

3. With Flight Service file IFR or DVFR (defense VFR flight plan) for your departure.

4. With Flight Service file a return flight plan for a date/time in the future when you think you’ll be returning. You can update your arrival time later. Have them put ADCUS (advise customs) in the remarks section.

5. Start flying south. Open your IFR with approach control, or call Flight Service to open your DVFR flight plan and they will give you your border crossing squawk code.

6. If you are crossing at San Diego and on flight following with SoCal Approach, you will be handed off to Tijuana Approach. It’s seamless. Tijuana controllers speak great English and they’ll clear you on course (or tell you to fly a radial outbound, usually for V3 airway). Depending on your altitude they’ll soon lose you on radar and tell you to contact the next approach control or destination airport tower 50 miles out. In my case I just stayed on V3 from the TIJ to the PPE VOR.

7. Arrive at your Mexican AOE (airport of entry). After landing, young military men with machine guns will greet you and inspect your airplane. There will be a lot of entry paperwork for your airplane and your passengers – immigration, customs, aircraft insurance verification, arrival flight plan, landing fee, etc. Plan on 30-60 minutes and $100 to clear in to the country (that’s for the airplane fees and two people immigration/customs fees). Be patient and respectful. Have lots of small bills. Dollars are OK, but they never have correct change and you are on the unfavorable side of the exchange rate. Some pilots bring pesos to minimize hassle.

8. Lock and cover your plane. Leave the ‘aeropuerto’ behind and go enjoy your weekend!

Here’s a picture of my FlightAware track. As you can see, the track stopped when I cancelled IFR about 30 miles southeast of Tijuana. Follow the dashed line across the Sea of Cortez – that’s where MMPE is.

Coming Home

1. On the day of your return, when you have a better estimate of your arrival time in San Diego, call the US Customs office and update them – get their direct number (this also makes sure they were notified of your arrival – remember the ADCUS remark in your flight plan from above?). If your arrival estimate is way far off from what you filed with Flight Service, call them too (get the direct dial number; 800-WXBRIEF doesn’t work. It can be difficult to find a phone to call from, and many of our USA cell phones do not work, so plan ahead.)

2. Pay your exit fees, fuel bill, etc. and get a departure flight plan (the airport officer will fill it out for you, just like he filled out your arrival flight plan).

3. During your preflight the military men will come over again and inspect the plane and ask a few basic questions (destination, name of the pilot, etc.)

4. Cleared for takeoff, set your course for Tijuana then San Diego (Brown Field KSDM). Tower will instruct you which approach control to contact and how many miles out to do so.

5. Once in flight you now have a really good idea about your ETA in San Diego. Call Flight Service (San Diego Radio on 122.5 south of Mexicali). Tell them you want to open your DVFR flight plan and update customs with your arrival time. They will give you a border crossing squawk code and advise you not to change it unless Tijuana Approach requests you use another code (not common, but no problem). You have to give at least 30 minutes notice when updating arrival time.

6. 50 miles out from Tijuana, approach can usually hear you at 8500′ or higher. The initial call to them is just like calling Norcal for flight following… who you are, where you are, what you want. They’ll get you on radar, confirm your border crossing squawk code (important), and tell you to fly direct to midfield over Tijuana (MMTJ) at 2000′. Later you’ll either get cleared straight-in to KSDM runway 26L/R or you’ll really need to cross MMTJ at 2000 and then descend into the KSDM traffic pattern. Either way is no problem.

7. Brown field ground control will tell you to taxi to customs. It’s a large blue box painted on the ramp in front of the terminal building.

8. At the customs box, shut down and get out – but do not leave the airplane until customs is finished with you. Potty breaks have to wait. This applies to everyone on board. The customs officer will need all passports, airplane airworthiness and registration, pilot certificate and medical. If you arrived within your ETA (plus 15, minus 0) and you’re the only plane there, it will take less than 5 minutes. Longer if a few planes are ahead of you.

9. Restart the plane and move it to the self serve gas (cheapest in San Diego) or to transient parking and go inside for a burger.

10. Depart KSDM and enjoy your flight home. I recommend IFR around San Diego if the airspace is unfamiliar to you. The San Diego class Bravo airspace can be confusing.

Resources

Afraid of traveling to Mexico? View this piece on the safety of Rocky Point.

Crossing the Mexican Border – AOPA Guide talks about the new 406 ELT requirement, Mexican liability insurance, documents to bring, etc.

Baja Bush Pilots – great for advice, purchase Mexico liability insurance instantly online, etc.

Stuff that you cannot bring into Mexico – e.g. guns, drugs, fruits, plants

Pilot Airport Information

Hotel: Mayan Palace

Condos to rent: Las Palomas Resort (but check rent-by-owner websites like VRBO.com for better rates)

 

If you would like personalized consulting, or if you’d like an instructor to accompany you on your first trip across the border, please contact me.

Fly safe,
Greg

Flying into the Las Vegas valley is an awesome experience. Many G.A. pilots choose North Las Vegas airport (KVGT), they have a great time in Vegas, and then fly home. Unfortunately, too large of a subset of these pilots screw up the instrument departure and find themselves in trouble with the FAA.

Below is a reprint of an FAA Safety Team bulletin that was issued today. If you fly IFR at North Las Vegas, read it and understand it. If you don’t understand it, give me a call and I’ll be happy to spend a day with you going to Vegas and showing you the local procedures. Or on a less grand scale, I can consult by phone or show you this procedure in a simulator.

Fly safe,
Greg

AWARENESS ADVISORY – North Town 2 Departure – Fly this Departure Precisely

The North Las Vegas, NV airport has had over 80 pilot deviations over the last two years. All have been on the “North Town 2” Standard Instrument Departure (SID).

The Las Vegas valley has four airports. The Las Vegas McCarran International Airport is one of the busiest airports in the nation. Nellis Air Force base is also one of the busiest military air bases. Add general aviation Henderson Executive and North Las Vegas airports, and you have a very high volume traffic area and little airspace to maneuver: over one million operations per year. It is imperative that the North Town 2 departure be flown, “as published”, to avoid loss of separation from other Las Vegas area airspace users.

There is nothing remarkable about this departure. Most deviations have occurred simply because of inadequate pre-flight planning and briefing. You must be prepared to fly the departure “as published” precisely. If you are going to fly out of the North Las Vegas Airport, under normal circumstances, you can expect ATC to issue this departure “as published”. Radar vectors are not used. All turns are right turns, except the initial slight left turn off runway 30.

A prudent, proficient, well prepared pilot is no accident. In the case of pilot airspace deviations, “what happens in Vegas, doesn’t stay in Vegas”. Don’t gamble with inadequate flight planning! Don’t raise the question: “if this pilot cannot fly a departure precisely, what else can’t he fly”?

Be prepared to fly the entire procedure precisely!