My wife and me made a weekend trip from Berlin to Bruges, uneventfull flight and landing at Ostend, EBOS, on Friday. Bruges is a very nice medieval city worth a visit.
Not nice is what happened on Sunday: We arrived at the airport quiet early. The security checks at belgian airports are strict, they begin already outside the terminal building. This is the price of cultural diversity and is understandable considering the given events. So far so good.
After passing two checkpoints, one with x-ray, we were asked for our passports by the police. A policeman went out of sight with our passports in his hand. Some fifteen minutes later he accompanied by three gunmen with MP turned up and told us we should wait, there is a problem with our aircraft. A thoroughly check of our luggage was performed manually during the first hour passed. We were told they need to examine the aircraft. Then a few people from the airport arrived on the scene still in the terminal building, a lady told us this would be a “random check”.
Escorted by several police officers, security personnel and airport staff we were driven to the aircraft on the GA apron, where a policeman inspected the cabin and the baggage compartment of our Cessna. I asked what he was looking for, he replied he cannot say anything about, this is secret. Meanwhile the second hour passed and urged me to request the TWR for a delay of our departure.
Now eight people, Police, Douane and airport staff stand beside the plane and discussed quiet. I recognized some photos of our Cessna in the hands of one policeman. It was an unfriendly atmosphere, surrounded by gunmen we felt like criminals. Then we got the information that we have to wait for another police officer which urged me to send the second delay message to ATC. After another thirty minutes a policeman with a drug search dog arrived on the apron. The dog searched inside the plane and then got shoes on his feet. The policeman raised the dog onto the plane, where the dog sniffed from the right end to the left end of the wing, then via the fuselage to both sides of the empennage. Finally after nearly three hours the policeman disappointed gave up and handed the passports back to us with “you can go”. Nor further explanation, no apology. The funny thing is that they didn`t look at the aircraft documents nor our licences.
What do you think about?
Is this a “random check” on belgian airports? Treating so tourists who have just left a lot of money in the country?
Has anyone experianced similar? What would you have done in this situation?
It certainly doesn’t sound random! Espicially given that they had photos of your aircraft already.
What would I have done? Exactly the same as you….nothing. If they think that they are on to something and they aren’t best to let them find that out for themselves. While you obviously want to hurry the situation along, any efforts to do that probably only result in it taking longer.
highflyer wrote:
Is this a “random check” on belgian airports?
Cerainly not! As you describe it (police officers holding photos of your aircraft, searching the aircraft inside and out with dogs) they had gotten some information about your aircraft – or a very similar one – being used in some kind of illegal activity. It would invalidate every security measure in force if they told you what their information was and where they got it from. You can consider yourself lucky that your plane was not used for smuggling without your knowledge, which happened to a former colleague some time ago (big style, it was all over the news). He spent several months in a Spanish prison until he could be cleared of all accusations. That is also a risk if you carry passengers that you don’t personally know, especially from unsecured airfields.
Luckily this kind of thing has never happened to me with an aircraft, but once with the car at the Italian-Swiss border. They picked me out of the traffic and treated me very similar as the Belgians treated you, including the dog. It only took one hour until they let me go, but it was bad enough. Obviously they had gotten a hint that a silver Citroen (my car then) would be used for smuggling drugs into Switzerland…
Feel free to PM me the details (registration, date and time) and I’ll be glad to inquire locally. Not sure it would get us a lot wiser, though.
PS next time consider avoiding the big airports – if you don’t need to clear immigration or customs, EBUL Ursel is a perfect alternative for visiting Brugge (beautiful indeed, though a bit dusty) though it has some limitations of its own.
PPSS Police and other authorities on the Belgian coast are very nervous right now with the close-down of the Calais “jungle” camp. Not sure if there’s a relation, though.
I disagree.
I support active security and agree that they should and must do their job.
However, they give nothing away by doing their job efficiently and with courtesy. From your description they did neither.
Morever, it would seem you have every reason to believe they had incorrect intelligence. Once that had been established I think you were quite entitled to press for an explanation, if only to avoid a repeat of events, wasting thier time, as much as yours. Would I rely on them to not make the same mistake twice – no!
If I wasnt satisfied with the explantion I would make a formal complaint.
Security is a two way contract. To be effective it must be based on our support and goodwill becasue if not it will prove less effective, and will risk some of the abuse of process we have seen in the past. We defend our security and our rights by working with the authorities BUT with them also working with us.
I would have been less than impressed.
Of course I would not expect them to reveal the source of intelligence, but equally I would expect them to follow up on why that intelligence was defective. There has been far too much malicious “intelligence” designed to damage and inconvenience others. It is important that that we deal with those who would act in this way.
I have experienced a slightly similiar situation only once following a diversion due to weather and landing at an airfiled that may have been “technically” closed although to this day I am not certain whether or not it was. The Gendarmerie started off their enquiries in a more than brusque manner suggesting that they would need to examine the aircraft, our luggage etc. I therefore politely pointed out that I was the commander of the aircraft and it was my legal responsibility as to who boarded and examined the aircraft and their entitlement to do so. I therefore explained that I would need to see their credentials and check these with their headquarters, together with making a record of their documents. Perhaps surprisingly we got on famoulsy after that with their enquiries being rstricted to where we had come from, where we were going and why we had diverted. Speaking French possibly helped 
Jan_Olieslagers wrote:
PS next time consider avoiding the big airports …
It is less than ten days ago that I was in Brussels last time. Total normal safety checks, no passports required from anyone (intra-Schengen), we 2 pilots and 7 passengers were through security in less than 3 minutes. They even allowed us to walk to our planbe without wearing yellow jackets…
And compared to Brussels, Oostende is a small countryside airfield. This security check had absolutely nothing to do with “big airports”.
Is it your own aircraft or do you rent? There could be a history of suspected dodgy business with it
Jan_Olieslagers wrote:
PS next time consider avoiding the big airports
EBOS has a big advantage: ILS on both RWys and possible departure even in bad weather, the fees are very fair.
Noe wrote:
Is it your own aircraft or do you rent?
I am the owner. But this was not of interest. They didn`t look at the aircraft documents.
I guess they would (or should) have known who was the registered owner and whether you were one and the same (from your passport check) but that doesnt mean (so far as they were concerned) the aircraft wasnt rented to others (as some owners rent their aircraft). For that reason, assuming they understood aviation, it is reasonable they should have asked you if anyone else had use of the aircraft at any time or whether you had recently acquired the aircraft (they should have known if the aircraft had recently changed hands).
There is a lot of drug smuggling going on using GA aircraft.
A well known Dutch pilot was caught recently in the UK with 22kg cocaine. He was flying to the UK on a weekly basis “for business”.
A week ago the police found 2kg of cocaine in an aircraft which was about to depart from Hilversum to Sweden. Police report in Dutch
My guess is that there was something in your flying profile that have triggered authorities.
