Penultimate DRAFT
The use of BIWIS for General Aviation Hold Baggage screening at Shannon Airport
Summary of Proposal
This Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) details the actions to be taken to induct the General
Aviation (GA) hold bags into the Baggage Image Weight Information System (BIWIS) on the Transit
baggage line at Shannon Airport in order to provide the CBP officers (CBPO) with the fullest details of
the GA hold baggage of each passenger in a secure, cost effective and efficient manner.
NOTE:1. This proposal will be used for all GA flights, including flights that are originating at as well as
transiting through Shannon Airport.
2. This process applies to all passengers and crew of the flight, henceforth referred to in the
SOP as travellers. All travellers for a flight must be processed at the same time through US
Preclearance facility.
3. All travellers must have a completed (US) customs declaration form CBP-6059B and a US
Immigration Form I-94 as required, before they present themselves at the CBP Primary
Inspection point.
The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)
1. The Fixed Base Operator/Handling Agent (FBO) is informed that a GA flight is planned to
transit through (or originate at) Shannon Airport and intends to use the US Preclearance
facility. Confirmation should be sought by the FBO that the flight has been accepted for
preclearance by CBP.
2. The FBO make enquiries in respect to the number of hold bags that will be on the flight in
order to prepare themselves for the flight.
3. The FBO meets the flight when it comes onto stand (or the travellers at the FBO office) and
arranges for the hold bags to be removed from the hold of the aircraft and brought to the
ground floor of a designated arrivals gate core.
4. At the designated core the FBO displays the hold baggage to the travellers and ensures that
each traveller identifies their own bag. Once a traveller identifies their bag a pre-printed bag
tag, with a unique bar code and serial number, is attached to the bag and the tear-off
receipt from the bag tag is attached to the owner’s passport. The receipt will also be preprinted with the identical bar code and serial number as the bag tag.
5. The FBO will also give each traveller a copy of the customs declaration form CBP-6059B ( and
Form I-94 as required) and remind them to have it completed prior to presenting themselves
at US Preclearance.
6. Once the identification process is completed and all bags are identified by their respective
owners, the travellers can proceed via the gate core into the terminal building (via the
airport’s Security Screening facility).
7. The hold bags, complete with their bag tags, are brought to the Transit BIWIS line. The FBO
introduces the flight identifier (e.g. the aircraft tail number) into the BIWIS at the induction
point and immediately introduces all of the hold baggage associated with that flight into the
Transit system. The bags are then off-loaded from the Transit system and held in the Secure
Baggage Compound (Basement or Ground Floor) until they are cleared by the CBPO. The
handling agent must remain with the baggage at all times until they are returned to the
aircraft.
8. Once the bags have been introduced into the Transit BIWIS, the bag picture, weight and
unique identifier (bar code number) are available to the officers in the GA Primary facility.
The officer can also be assured that the bag has been screened for radiation by the RPM at
the Transit line. No traveller from a flight can be processed at the GA Primary Facility until
all of the hold bags from the flight have been inducted into the BIWIS.
9. When the GA traveller arrives at the US Preclearance GA Primary Screening facility they
present all of their bag tag receipts to the CBPO together with the customs declaration form
(US immigration form as required) and their other documents.
10. The CBPO scans the barcode of each individual bag tag, which brings up the picture, weight
and identifier of each bag on the BIWIS screen. Each time a bag picture is brought up onto
the screen, the CBPO asks the traveller if they can identify the image as being of their bag. If
the traveller agrees that the image is of their bag, the CBPO uses the image and details to
assess the bag and make a decision on the bag and the traveller.
11. If the traveller does not confirm that the image is of their bag the CBPO signals, through the
BIWIS, for the bag to be pulled and brought to Secondary Screening Area via the adjacent
elevator system. Further examination of the traveller and the baggage can then take place
in the Secondary Screening Area as required.
12. If the CBPO signals for the bag to be pulled for further inspection, the FBO must remove the
particular bag and bring it to the main entrance of the HBS facility. The bag is to be brought
into the facility and placed on the Out-of-Gauge (OOG) HBS line to be screened by the
security operator. The bag will then exit onto the OOG output belt where the FBO will
collect it and bring it to the CBP lift, place it on a baggage trolley and allow the lift to be
dispatched to the CBP offices. The FBO must await the return of the bag via the lift once it is
inspected by the CBPO.
13. On completion of the screening process all bags will have been examined by the CBPO. If
during the screening process a bag tag is not declared by a traveller the associated line on
the BIWIS will remain with a “not cleared” status and further checks on the overall hold
baggage for the flight can be made by the CBPO before the bags are cleared for onward
passage. A total bag count can also be undertaken at any point during the overall process to
ensure that all bags have been put through the system.
14. Once all the hold bags are cleared for onward passage, they will be brought to the ramp area
immediately adjacent to Gate Core 8. They will not be brought back to the aircraft until the
travellers and the CBPO are in attendance. The travellers for the GA flight will arrive at this
point, escorted by the CBPO, be reconciled with their baggage and will then return to their
flight.
15. The CBPO will examine the aircraft prior to the travellers being allowed to re-board the flight
or the bags re-loaded into the hold.
16. Once the final checks by the CBPO are complete, the bags are re-loaded onto the aircraft,
the travellers board the aircraft and the flight is dispatched immediately.