This AC deal is also flagged up in Trip Transport:-

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...ler-deal-80707

__________________
Dave

Just so all are aware. This program will be a trail for the whole of 2015, to virtually all their wide-body jet locations world wide, any direction. I even got them to guarantee my return price over a year later in 2016 from any of their destinations in Europe (London, Paris, Venice, Rome). They also offer insurance for shipping at $3/$1000 value and this includes all accessories and contents in the panniers as long as they are left open and manifested for customers both ways.

Yes you can also fly out from any of their destinations as long as you arrive in Canada for the same discounted amounts. Prices do vary depending of location obviously.

If you want to speak with their rep in person, they will have a booth at the HU meeting in Ontario in June where you can book as well within 30 day window.

__________________
The less one knows about bikes, the more one loves Harleys!

Yes, I noticed that later.

I'm not on here very often since all I tour is Europe and after 20 straight years of doing so, chances are any new tips of importance are already known to me.

__________________
All the best,
Alex

Alex's BMW Motorcycle & Global Touring Page
SmugMug Site
Alps Motorcycle Tours - Priced Right


- If motorcyclists claim to be individuals, why then do so many of them ride in packs?

Another reply from Air Canada since I advised them it would be a good idea to mention dimensional maximums. I have done this many times, so what is obvious to me, may not be to others.

That means taking the windshield off on certain motorcycles.



And here are other responses from Air Canada that motorcyclists might have...

On the shipping in advance topic, as I mentioned I always shipped a day or two before my flight. I've never been charged a "storage charge", not for two days. That might have changed since 2010 or if your motorcycle sits there for a week.

Due to their response above, I then asked "But if it arrives with the passenger, how long does it take for the motorcycle to reach the cargo facility from the aircraft?"

Air Canada's response:
Six hours is a bit long to have to wait. I am usually on the road 6 hours after landing and that covers getting my luggage, clearing customs, taxi transport to Air Canada Cargo, clearing the motorcycle through customs, getting gas, installing parts, etc.

As for clearing customs, I always had to do the legwork. The office the last two times was a 15 minute walk from Air Canada Cargo on Shoreham Road East at London-Heathrow. Once there, maybe 30 minutes and I was done.

__________________
All the best,
Alex

Alex's BMW Motorcycle & Global Touring Page
SmugMug Site
Alps Motorcycle Tours - Priced Right


- If motorcyclists claim to be individuals, why then do so many of them ride in packs?

There's more discussion of this same subject at this post:

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...ler-deal-80707

Below is a picture of my motorcycle (a Honda ST1100, also known as a 'PanEuropean') inside a Uniform Load Device (ULD, also known as an 'air freight can'). This particular size of ULD is used on wide-body flights.

When I shipped this motorcycle to Europe from Canada, the guys in the freight shed told me to not bother putting it on a pallet, instead, I just drove it into the can and tied it down in the can. But, some freight depots prefer to have the moto put on a pallet that they can then forklift into the can. So, find out in advance what the local preference is. Be aware that if you build your own wooden pallet, you have to use pressure-treated (chemically treated) lumber, otherwise the agricultural inspectors at the other end will have fits worrying about whether some unwanted wood-boring insect might be sneaking into the country undocumented inside your pallet.

There are more photos at the other post, the one I referred to above.

Michael

Motorcycle inside an air freight container

That didn't seem to be an issue since it was never mentioned at either end of the transport.

In every case, I either modified pallets (first pic) or made my own (second pic) simply because I wanted to make sure nothing happened to my motorcycle and that it was tied down rock solid. I did all the prep work. The base of those containers look flimsy as in they look as if they could bend in on themselves.

First trip over in 1995...


Last time I shipped...

__________________
All the best,
Alex

Alex's BMW Motorcycle & Global Touring Page
SmugMug Site
Alps Motorcycle Tours - Priced Right


- If motorcyclists claim to be individuals, why then do so many of them ride in packs?

I've shipped my moto back and forth across the Atlantic many times, and never had to wait anything remotely close to 6 hours to get it.

In practice, the freight comes off the aircraft itself very quickly (just as quickly as the passenger baggage comes off). Once off the aircraft, it has to be transported to the air freight warehouse, which is usually some distance away from the passenger terminal.

But, if you are on the same plane (as a passenger), you'll have to go through immigration, get your luggage, go through customs, then take a taxi over to the air freight warehouse, and by the time you do that, the motorcycle will most likely be at the warehouse. I've never "beaten the motorcycle to the freight shed" in my life... it's always been there before I get there.

What you do need to know is that the taxi ride from the passenger terminal to the freight shed will not be cheap (the freight sheds are almost always on the other side of the runway, that means a $50 taxi ride), and it will take you an hour or two to do the paperwork and get the motorcycle cleared out of the freight shed by Customs (a much faster and easier process in Europe than it is in Canada). Then, finally, you will have to pay the warehouse fees, which will include one day of storage even if your bike has only been in the building for 30 minutes (figure on about $100 in warehouse fees), and finally, you will need to get the bike out of the can - or off the pallet, as the case may be - and out onto the road.

Don't take it for granted that you will simply be able to drive out of the air freight warehouse. Often, the warehouses have truck docks on the public (the exit) side, and no ramp to run the motorcycle down. That means that you then have to hang around until you can find a sympathetic truck driver who will lower the bike down to the pavement using the liftgate on his/her truck.

Best time I have ever experienced was going into Paris - the plane landed at 0600 in the morning, I was riding down the road on the bike at 0810. But that was quite exceptional. Typically, it takes about 3 hours from touchdown to getting on the road (that's for Europe), and it can easily take a whole friggin' day in Canada.

Michael

Same here in my 20 years of riding there, but as Air Canada indicated to me, it can take up to 6 hours to get the motorcycle to the cargo facility. Something I am not willing to risk with jet lag...I want to get going.

Who have you been flying with? I've never paid any warehouse fees and my motorcycle gets there a day or two before I arrive.

You won't be able to do anything to the motorcycle till it has cleared customs.

__________________
All the best,
Alex

Alex's BMW Motorcycle & Global Touring Page
SmugMug Site
Alps Motorcycle Tours - Priced Right


- If motorcyclists claim to be individuals, why then do so many of them ride in packs?

Hi Alex:

The whole 'warehouse fee' issue seems to be dependent on whether the air carrier that you ship the motorcycle with owns and operates their own freight shed, or whether they use an agent to handle their freight at 'out' destinations (meaning, destinations outside of the home country of the air carrier).

Most of the time, I've shipped with Air Transat, a Canadian charter carrier. They don't operate their own freight facilities anywhere, instead, they contract out their freight handling to independent facilities at each airport. I have always had to pay warehouse fees at the receiving end of the shipment, but never at the drop-off location.

I don't know what Air Canada's policy on warehouse fees is - my guess is that it is going to vary by location, and also vary depending on whether it is Air Canada themselves or a third party that handles the freight at the destination.

What I do know, and this is from a lot of experience, is that one always has to be prepared to pay a very wide variety of fees (customs fees, inspection fees, port fees, etc.) that can be imposed by any number of participants (the air carrier, the warehouse operator, the airport operator, customs & agricultural inspectors, etc.) at the receiving end of the shipment. Sometimes one might get lucky and pay very little, sometimes you get the shaft and have to pay $100 to $100. It's a bit like buying a passenger air ticket, in the sense that there are lots of little surcharges that might get added on.

Personally, I think it's great that Air Canada is trying to make it more attractive to customers to ship motorcycles by air. I think Air Canada is a trustworthy and honest company - I've flown over 1 million miles with them, and been given an award for that.

What I have been trying to stress to novice motorcycle shippers in the posts I have made recently is that the the whole process of shipping a motorcycle internationally by air is not as simple as just checking in baggage at the passenger terminal. There are forms to fill out, and processes that have to be gone through (mostly at the destination end). The paperwork is not especially complicated, but for someone who has not done it before, it can be intimidating.

In particular, the legal requirement (IATA regulation) that states that the cargo carrier and their representative who receives the shipment cannot complete the DG paperwork (the person shipping the moto has to do that) can present a last-minute surprise to novice shippers, and problems can arise if the folks at the freight shed are not familiar with the classification (UN 3166, vehicle, flammable liquid powered) and packing instructions for the moto. That stuff is easy for me because I am a retired aircraft pilot who used to teach DG documentation courses. It's not going to be quite so easy for someone who has not ever shipped air cargo internationally.

Hence my recommendation that first-time shippers visit the freight receiving facility well ahead of time to become familiar with the process (and possible pitfalls, such as how to get the moto onto the dock and into the freight shed), and that the ease of getting the moto cleared through customs at the destination end will vary very much depending on the destination country.

Michael

Here's a link to a post I made here on the HUBB 9 years ago, explaining how the DG documentation process works.

I cannot assure you that the rules that were in force 8 years ago are unchanged today - you will have to look at a CURRENT (2015) copy of the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations to determine that - but the general concepts will remain the same.

Here's the link: http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...cles-air-21880

I can confirm that it isn't an issue into London-Heathrow (LHR) and I am sure it would not be into any major center that Air Canada flies into, like Frankfurt. In other words anywhere they have their own Air Canada Cargo office and warehouse.

In my case, in three shipments with Air Canada, the first two being handled through Kuhne & Nagel (K&N no longer handle private accounts), I have never paid any fees other than Dangerous Goods (here) and customs duty at the destination. The duties were on the shipping charges.

I've never had any inspection fees or had my motorcycle inspected.

I have a copy of UN 3166 and have always performed my own prep plus they know me well and just sign off the paperwork because of that.

__________________
All the best,
Alex

Alex's BMW Motorcycle & Global Touring Page
SmugMug Site
Alps Motorcycle Tours - Priced Right


- If motorcyclists claim to be individuals, why then do so many of them ride in packs?

Bike being delivered to Air Canada on 5 may in Montreal. Will pick it up in FRA on 8 may. What a difference, last time $2250US each way, now about $600US.

I just shipped myself and F800 GS Paris to Montreal and then Vancouver with Air Canada. At their urging I booked a discount air ticket then used the Toronto e-mail address to arrange the Cargo part. They obviously were not practiced on motorcycle shipping and had to check with their boss etc. But the service was very good. I told them I am a well known motorcycle blogger and that helped. A couple of tips. The super cheap shipping promotion will end at some point, and is only out of Canada for now. Their normal rates are the same as Motorcycle Express - Ship Your Bike It helped also that I deliberately booked a ticket on wide body aircraft. Cargo space is less limited. That got the bike tied to a pallet on both planes with me. They did walk me through Paris customs. But in Vancouver just told me where to go. As someone else pointed out WASH THE BIKE really well. Bio hazards can come in dead bugs on in mud on tires. The check for this when the bike arrives and you going to have problems if the bike is dirty. Even so it took a day and some to extract the bike from the Air Canada Warehouse and they docked me a couple of hundred for storage. The major difference between Motorcycle Express and Air Can is ME wants to hear from you a month or two before shipping. ME ships anywhere but the need to arrange things, so they need to hear from you before you by your air ticket. They are very experienced. Air Can got me on the plane a week from my contacting them. They only want a liter of gas in the bike but don't care as long as they don't see fuel washing around the tank. They did not have to disconnect the battery. Supposedly you can only have tools and parts in the bags but they did not check and I had some clothes. They want the key in the ignition and it's OK to have the bags locked. They bill you based on the bikes dimensions and weight. I just used figures from the owners manual and added 30 pounds for stuff in the bags. I don't think they weighed the bike but the might have. Note rates vary a bit by route. It was less to go through Montreal than Toronto. I dropped the bike off 5 hours before the flight. Normally you do it the day before but it was a holiday. Air can gave me a ride to the air terminal from the cargo terminal. Dave

Hello to everybody ...


and thank you for the great information from this thread.

While being out in Florida right now and urgently trying to find some fast and economic transport to Southamerica, I came across this awsome offer from Air Canada via a German friend today. Following it to the Hubb I found further valuable information in this thread here.

So I called Air Canada today in Toronto following this information from their website dating Feb 18 th 2015 at What's new - Air Canada Cargo

Talked to a very friendly guy there , who unfortunately left me with some rather sad information. As I cannot find out , how valid this is, I thought it might be interesting for some of you for further plannings in case. Maybe someone could check with Air Canada what the future setup will be.

I was told today, that due to various customs issues in the countries of destination out of Canada this programm by now is only available for Flights out of Montreal/ Toronto / (guess also Vancouver , but had not asked for that) and back to there for destinations

London Heathrow UK and

Frankfurt Germany

The Programm shall be suspended by end September 2015 and decisions shall yet to be made, whether and where to restart the programm in 2016.

As said I cannot tell you about how official and valid this information is .

Prices given to me with the Programm for a 300 kg R1200 GSA from Toronto would have been for an assumed dimensional weight of 531 kg

-800 CND one way being booked myself on Aircanada to Frankfurt Germany
-1100 CND with the bike flying on itself

that was a price for Roll in the bike and drop at their cargo section without crading yourself

-3000 CND was called for as regular airfare

So as much as this was the perfect airline offer it seems, it could be suspended or at least widely reduced for the future. What a pity that would be for so many of travelling bikers.

Maybe statring some bikers action here in the forum, adressing politely to Air Canada and showing everybodies` interest would help, to get it going on ?


Just my 2 cents searching on for affordable and fast short term transport to Argentina or Chile . Airfreightrates so far out of the US to Buenos Aires as much as to Chile are very impressive and none so far rates lower than 4000 USD one way. Having contacted all recommended freightagents I found in the Hubb here I hope to still end with some better offers.

As I was explained by some freight specialist, the high prices to SA and even more henerally out of the US for airfreight result from the legal issue from the US side, that forces motorcycles as "Dangerous goods" into cargoflights only. While the high demand on Cargoflights at the same time rises prices for the high demand on it.

So a bit offtopic if anyone of you knows a reliable and economic way to get a bike flown shortterm from US or Canada to SA, your information is warmly welcome. as time flies.

And to help get the Air Canada offer going on seems worth some effort

Good nite from Florida

BABA

__________________
BABA Henning
www.ride-of-smiles.com - when bikers make a better world

Unfortunately the Canadian Airlines cargo shipping deal ended Sept 30 2015. However, they plan to revamp the program starting early spring 2016. That's straight from Patricia the project coordinator.