Taking micrologger abroad

This has probably been covered before. So appy polly logies in advance!

I would like to take my Micrologger cw/sd card abroad. I intend to take
all the leafletry it came with. I understand it has to have batteries in,
and be switched on.

I am flying with NO CHECK IN . So it has to be hand luggage. My main
concern is having it confiscated. It has a barograph. Am I OK taking this
to New Zealand?

On Fri, 21 Aug 2015 23:22:15 +0000, Tommy Lynch wrote:

This has probably been covered before. So appy polly logies in advance!

I would like to take my Micrologger cw/sd card abroad. I intend to
take
all the leafletry it came with. I understand it has to have batteries
in, and be switched on.

Might be an idea to check with customs or whoever handles security at
your departure airport.

It occurs to me that something that only lights up an LED or two and
maybe makes one of them blink, e.g. a Nano or an EW MicroRecorder, could
look less obviously harmless than, say, an Oudie, which does something
the officer can understand such as showing a map when it boots up.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

Hi,

There's no restriction on taking an electronic flight recorder onto an aeroplane. For the record, I've taken an Oudie 2, Oudie IGC, LX Nano, Spot, InReach and two 9Ah LiFePO4 batteries in & out of USA, AUS & HKG repeatedly.

The restriction applies to the batteries that run them. The restrictions are too long to mention here but are determined by battery type (chemistry), size (capacity), enclosure (in equipment or spare) and location (cabin vs checked baggage). Refer to this link: https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org..._batteries.pdf

Note you can take more in hand luggage than you can checked. This is because in the cabin it's accessible to crew so they can fight the potential fire whereas in the hold it is not.

As you've said, for security reasons you'll need to be able to prove that it is what it appears to be by turning it on. This applies to laptops and mobile phones too so never travel with electronics that have a flat battery.

If asked what something is, explain it in terms they understand. You'll get less hassle with "it's a PDA" than "It's an Oudie glide computer with barometric recording".

I haven't covered customs as I read your concerns as being security-centric but if the country you're travelling to attempts to charge you duty and you aren't staying there permanently, you can apply for a carnet. If they doubt your claim you may still have to pay the duty upfront but it'll be refunded upon departure if you follow their procedure. Very rarely a problem for such a low value item unless you're travelling to a known 'tax Nazi' country like Japan or India.

CJ

If they doubt your claim you may still have to pay the duty upfront but it'll be refunded upon departure if you follow their procedure. Very rarely a problem for such a low value item

I used to carry large, expensive test equipment in and out of NZ and you always had to tell NZ customs that I WANTED them to view the gear and sign the carnet, otherwise they weren't bothered. Certainly for a Nano or EW logger, just keep it in your hand-luggage and tell them what it is when it shows up on the X-ray. You won't have a problem.

What NZ does care about is anything that could introduce unwanted insects or pathogens into the local agricultural industries, so declare ANYTHING that could be viewed as food or plant matter, and give any camping gear (including your hiking boots) a darn good clean before you pack them. They used to clean your boots for free at the airport but now they charge for it.

Oh, and don't bring any class-A drugs or large quantities of pseudo-ephedrine either. We're really just a bunch of killjoys down here.

DH

Same experience here with Garmin handhelds, my Delorme InReach, and an older CAI Model 20. Never even asked to take these out of my carry on bag.

P3

On Saturday, August 22, 2015 at 5:01:56 AM UTC+3, wrote:
As you've said, for security reasons you'll need to be able to prove that it is what it appears to be by turning it on. This applies to laptops and mobile phones too so never travel with electronics that have a flat battery..

I usually travel with all manner of electronic stuff in both cabin baggage and checked baggage. Often several laptops, GPSs such as the CAI Model 10, external hard drives (a 4 slot Drobo full of disks on my recent trip NZ-Moscow). Even hobbiest electronic things such as Raspberry Pi or Arduino, and home made daughter-boards for them.

I've never been asked to turn anything on. Occasionally I've been asked what something is, but have never had a problem.

On the other hand, entering the MAKS-2015 airshow on Sunday, bags were inspected repeatedly (getting onto a bus from the train station to the airfield, entering the airfield), not only asking to turn on my camera and phone, but they also opened my water bottle and smelled the contents.

(I was happy to see a Wilga and Swift as one of the opening acts of the flying display -- their takeoff was literally the first thing, and the Swift's display was a few minutes later)