Weston is not a port of entry
One should always phone the airport 
5 mins ago…
You can fly between Weston and the rest of the EU.
If everybody is an Irish or UK passport holder they need 24hrs PNR for Customs/Immigration.
If somebody is non-UK/Irish but is EU, they need 48hrs PNR for Customs/Immigration.
If somebody is non-EU, they can’t do it.
This is why so many one-liners are of limited use. Always find out for yourself…
While Waterford does require PPR, I’d be surprised if Wateford required pre-notice for Customs, but Peter is correct. The only way is to ask them .
Our customs proceedures is not backed up by legislation (at least none that places an obligation on the pilot) but there is a system of agreements between Customs and each airport. The only way to know what to do for any particular airport is to ask them.
dp
Except that no airport has a right to see the GAR and the confidential/personal info on it, and the UK border force people have specifically said so, following some farcical showdowns where an airport refused to give somebody a taxi clearance because the tower did not have the GAR.
Probably no airport complies with the data protection requirements for the stuff on the GAR.
None of this is applicatble because Ireland is not the UK.
Waterford airport require PPR. How you give them the information is up to you, but letting them have a copy of your UK GAR will suffice. As I said, so will an email.
Weston is not a port of entry.
Yes – both Weston and Waterford show “Customs 24hrs PNR”. Both are thus Ports of Entry, and both need the passenger details 24hrs ahead (they are flexible on the 24hrs bit, in practice).
I went to Weston some weeks ago. They are indeed happy with the UK GAR but they don’t need all that info.
The bottom line is that relying on anything critical off a pilot forum is not a good idea. It’s great for pointers, but nothing beats just asking the airport, and this case it is trivially easy because they speak English (well sort of, a bit like the Scots 
).
Flying between UK and the CTA (N and S Ireland, IOM, the C.I.) is unfortunately something where you need to get the paperwork right, because the police just love that job creation scheme and are very likely to turn up and give you a hard time if you screw up. UK to anywhere else in Europe is much simpler.
Possibly the myth gets perpetuated because Weston do require a seperate Customs submission and (On my last visit at least) find a copy of the UK GAR satisfactory. (I don’t mind them knowing my DOB!). There’s no friendlier place than Weston BTW and and the approach ‘down the river’ is utterly spectacular provided you follow the right river. (Skydemon is invaluable in this regard).
which is conveniently satisfied by sending them a copy of your UK GAR
Except that no airport has a right to see the GAR and the confidential/personal info on it, and the UK border force people have specifically said so, following some farcical showdowns where an airport refused to give somebody a taxi clearance because the tower did not have the GAR.
Probably no airport complies with the data protection requirements for the stuff on the GAR.
The only way to get this stuff right is to simply phone up (or otherwise contact) the destination and ask them what they actually want. Same in aviation everywhere, not just Ireland…
No paperwork overlooked, please don’t perpetuate the myth.
Waterford is a port of entry. No Customs notification required. No Immigration notification either as it’s Common Travel Area, assuming all on board qualify.
The Airport’s own PPR requirement is a separate issue, which is conveniently satisfied by sending them a copy of your UK GAR, although an email will suffice.
I flew from Gloucester to Waterford in September VFR in our TB20. Also first flight to Ireland. Great day out. Dublinpilot has some good advice above, but the main thing I learnt was the need to fly high enough for the radio to work. I can imagine the weather could easily be an issue. It was really quite easy – very helpful controllers and not that busy an airport.
One easily overlooked bit of paperwork is informing the Irish Customs people – KDEnforce – who require 24 hour notice by email. I think Waterford airport may have forwarded my details for me in any case – they also wanted 24 hour PPR. Some mistakenly believe the AOPA GAR system would handle that paperwork but it doesn’t – it covers the UK side of things only.
Having holidayed (many years ago) in that region, I would strongly recommend a hire car and a few days to look drive around, giving more flexibility on which days and where you fly.
I wrote that flight up in my blog
http://flyerdavid.wordpress.com/2013/09/14/daytrip-to-waterford-ireland/
If you do decide on Waterford, you are better off parking at the club. The airport is great, but a lot of money to park on the apron. The club is free, perhaps a donation to the tea and biscuits tin? There may be room in the hangar, else there’s plenty of room on the grass outside. DO NOT (note the capital letters) power it onto the grass, it is soft and you risk prop strike. Pull it on and off.
Call the club, have a chat and see if there’s room. You’ll find them very friendly and there are good facilities for flight briefing.
Remember… flying in Ireland is easy. You get invited into controlled airspace (!) and there’s a RADAR service all the way, by default. Filing a flight plan is as simple as calling a telephone number and dictating it to a helpful person the other end. The only bother is the weather, but that’s why Ireland is green.
Roger
(Waterford Aero Club member)
