I have finally settled down after 40 plus hours in airports and airplanes. It was a great hunt and a good time in southern Africa.

NOTICE: Be sure you have a letter of invitation to hunt in RSA if you have to check your rifles in RSA!!! This means if you are passing through and staying overnight you must have a letter from an outfitter/PH???? in RSA in order to get a permit to bring the guns to RSA. Let me explain.
We had completed our hunt in Zambia and were exiting Africa through Cape Town where we would visit for a few days prior to departing for home. Even though I had a letter from Wes Hixon and another from Kwalata Safaris that I was hunting in Zambia and my travels would take me throug RSA on the return trip. I had the recommended letter explainging my reason for the trip through RSA and a complete itinarary, they still wanted a letter from a PH in RSA. I explained that I was only passing through RSA and not hunting there, therefore no letter from a local PH. They were going to keep the 4 rifles and other equipment until monday (today) and I am already home. Finally one of the SAPS offered me a letter from a mysterious PH that they had numerous copies of and things went on from there.

Suggestion: Some of our regular outfitters that post regularly on the forum could create a bogus invitation that we could download and take with us to RSA. It would be better that the Bogus one I had to buy in Johannasburg. I know it isn't ethical but neither is the police extortion. It would help out a lot.

quote:

Suggestion: Some of our regular outfitters that post regularly on the forum could create a bogus invitation that we could download and take with us to RSA. It would be better that the Bogus one I had to buy in Johannasburg. I know it isn't ethical but neither is the police extortion. It would help out a lot.

That would really be looking for trouble! Cutting in on a nice "deal" of the SAPS at JIA Firearms office in which they sell "bogus" Letters of Invitation (LoI) the foreign visitors with firearms. Immagine what police swoop XYZ Hunting Outfitter would get if the JIA guys even start suspecting that the LoI issued by XYZ Outfitters was a bogus one. Remember that they can very easily check it out if they so wish. Just phone XYZ to the number on the letterhead and ask a few details about their "bogus client". I would really not want to be XYZ Outfitters if some corrupt SAPS official at JIA sends his equally corrupt buddies to go and check out XYZ Outfitters!

My advice would be - seeing that by now you are home and safe? - to now post the time and date and, if you have, the names of the SAPS officials involved. It would help and the amount actually paid for such a letter, and what details are on the letter?

The letter may be "totally bogus", with an non-existing or bogus HO as the author. Maybe your action will hurt a really straight and honest HO whose LoI was copied by the SAPS and then sold?

Sorry, but I for one would not even consider issuing a bogus LoI in which the "firearm owner" could just fill in his particulars.

Matters at JIA are bad enough, without complication of bogus LoI's issued by real life Hunting Outfitters.

In good hunting.

Andrew McLaren

why didn't you send your guns home by checking them thru on your flight to RSA and have them held at your airport customs till you arrived?
I've done that with cases of documents from meetings several times....I "think" the storage rate is something around $2/day an it is secure here in the USA

You do NOT need a letter from an outfitter in RSA if your are just in transit. Even if you are staying overnight in RSA. No reputable outfitter is going to give you a letter saying you are hunting with him, when you are actually going on a wine tour in Capetown.

Just a scam for them to make some money.

This is the way a lot of Africa works. Paperwork not quite in order, visa has the wrong dates, taking a long time to get the paperwork approved, etc. When there is an "African problem" a little "American greenback" is an immediate solution.

Regards,

Terry

quote:

why didn't you send your guns home by checking them thru on your flight to RSA and have them held at your airport customs till you arrived?

I don't think the airlines will ship your firearms unaccompanied (maybe if you pay the freight). Are you saying when he arrived in Capetown, that he should have gone to the airline and said, "Can you ship these guns and ammo to Dallas for me? I am spending a few days here, but will be leaving for Dallas in a few days and will pick them up there." Don't think that is going to happen.

Regards,

Terry

not saying that at all, what I do when I have back to back meetings in different countries, i.e. China & S. Korea is I arrive at my first leg airport (China) check my materials thru to NYC while I get my boarding passes to S. Korea. I've never had a problem nor has any one else I know of doing this. My secured boxes have always been in USA customs upon my arrival with the luggage claims...the airport either holds them in their secure 'in transit" area or sends then to customs.

Cats,

What you are suggesting is not legal. Under current safey regulations, if a passenger is not on the plane the bag should remain at the airport.

Just because you havent been caught doesnt mean its legal.

quote:

Originally posted by TNJohn:
Under current safey regulations, if a passenger is not on the plane the bag should remain at the airport.

My flight back from Johannesburg was delayed while they removed the checked bag of someone who checked in for the flight but did not board.

quote:

Originally posted by cats:
why didn't you send your guns home by checking them thru on your flight to RSA and have them held at your airport customs till you arrived?
I've done that with cases of documents from meetings several times....I "think" the storage rate is something around $2/day an it is secure here in the USA

I could not send the guns on as I was staying over in Cape Town for four days. Johannasburg was my first port of entry into RSA and we had to go through immigration/customs and since I would be in RSA for a few days the guns had to be registered with SAPS. They did have a sign stating that you did need a letter of invitation to hunt in RSA to have sporting arms there. We were in the office for over two hours trying to sort out the issue. What they did was illegal as hell but it was still being done. If they told you to come back next week and sort out the issue would you stay in RSA an extra week to get the guns through. Checking the rifles through to the USA and someone in customs is not a good idea either as you will not know until you show up if they have arrived. I didn't create the problem, I am not the only one to have experienced the problem, I am only telling what I went through to get my stuff registered. Trying to fight the SAPS over laws in their country is not smart and can get you landed in jail quickly. I don't know what else can be done, just thought you be better prepared for the experience if you know about it. I was not prepared to leave several thousand dollars of guns and optics in my tuff pack to their own devices with SAPS. It is illegal post 9/11 for luggage to travel without the owner being on the flight unless it is an airline mistake. Sending it by freight requires export license and all the crap that goes with it. I just smiled and paid $20.00 to the lady and got it done. I didn't know what else to do as I exhausted every option I had.

There ain't no constants in third world countries. It's like golf, you play the ball where it lies. Hopefully you are in a country with a favorable exchange rate. Less than $20.00 US can sometimes work wonders. On another tack, one can play stupid, it work well sometimes, because the locals get a sense of superiority over the stupid American. Be aware, be carefull, don't overplay your hand and get mad or be the superior american because you will need a large shot of novacane in the vaseline.

Dave