Etihad and firearms

Bwana'

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Looking to book a trip for next summer.
Hoping the pandemic subsides...

Anyway, Looking at Etihad out of Chicago.

Anyone have experiences with Etihad and transporting firearms?
Anything that a first time"solo" traveler may appreciate?

Thanks in advance!!!
 
Hi Bwana,

I've not flown Etihad out of Chicago but I fly Emirates out of Chicago with some frequency. ZERO issues with firearms. Super easy firearm permitting process. NEVER have they lost my luggage or rifles.

Emirates Chicago-Dubai-Jo'Burg (or Lusaka, or Dar Salaam, or Harare) is the absolute most reliable way to travel from Chicago for a safari.
 
Thank you!!!
I looked first for Emirates, but they ended up being between 50 and 75% more in cost.

Mid June for 3 weeks, what I am seeing out of Chicago it is:
Etihad the cheapest
Turkish is second
Lufthansa and Swiss are a distant third.

Turkish is 20-30% more
Swiss and Lufthansa are about 25-50% more expensive.

Last week Qatar had round trip flights for $713.00
This week those same flights are $1800

Ugghgh!

Hi Bwana,

I've not flown Etihad out of Chicago but I fly Emirates out of Chicago with some frequency. ZERO issues with firearms. Super easy firearm permitting process. NEVER have they lost my luggage or rifles.

Emirates Chicago-Dubai-Jo'Burg (or Lusaka, or Dar Salaam, or Harare) is the absolute most reliable way to travel from Chicago for a safari.
 
So I take it you're doing coach class tickets from your quotes.

Some things to think about:

-Emirates coach is nearly as good as domestic business class on many carriers. Its worth more.
-Emirates has an easy rifle permit process. That means you can do it yourself without needing a gun-travel travel agent that charges a $250 service fee and then sells you the tickets at a higher markup as well.
-Lufthansa and Swiss fly through Europe usually and you can't fly with guns to Africa.

If you do some digging, you may find that the other carriers aren't all they're cracked up to be. You'll need to read the fine print very carefully.

I can say universally is that Emirates is very gun-friendly.
 
I have flown Etihad from America to Tanzania twice and had no problems. I was not carrying firearms either time so can't comment on that aspect of your question.

All the best.
 
Definitely call Travel Express. They can handle anything you need. No problems, no hassle and probably as reasonable as the airlines.
 
Best advice I can give is call Lori or Jen @TRAVEL EXPRESS


That advice costs about $250 plus possibly a higher price airline ticket with surcharges. Is that worth it? Absolutely if you're doing multiple carriers and you're stopping in countries for layovers or connections that require a pile of rifle permit paperwork.

But for a single-carrier trip from Chicago to Jo'Burg on emirates for example? ZERO value add for an additional $400 total cost of tickets approximately.
 
That advice costs about $250 plus possibly a higher price airline ticket with surcharges. Is that worth it? Absolutely if you're doing multiple carriers and you're stopping in countries for layovers or connections that require a pile of rifle permit paperwork.

But for a single-carrier trip from Chicago to Jo'Burg on emirates for example? ZERO value add for an additional $400 total cost of tickets approximately.
I have to disagree with you. Travel agents do charge a fee for their service. They get the tickets at the same or cheaper price than we can. You can also read ad nauseam here on AH about folks who did their own tickets and had disasters and some even lost their guns (at least in one case).
Additionally if you are having to use multiple airlines, like I often have to do, they get the flights all on one ticket. So if one flight is delayed or cancelled you are not screwed and have to buy all new tickets. I can not put three airlines on one ticket, they will be three separate tickets.
IF someone is in the unique position to travel on one airline the WHOLE way and they are familiar with the firearms forms then, and only then, would I recommend not using a travel agent.
For me this post sounds like a well meaning, yet uninformed person, about to make a bad decision. If he uses a travel agent, yes he's out $200, but his trip will go well IMO.
Regards,
Philip
 
Looking to book a trip for next summer.
Hoping the pandemic subsides...

Anyway, Looking at Etihad out of Chicago.

Anyone have experiences with Etihad and transporting firearms?
Anything that a first time"solo" traveler may appreciate?

Thanks in advance!!!
PLEASE, especially as its your first trip to Africa, use a knowledgeable travel agent. I've used most of them and appreciate their service. I have not known of anyone using Etihad with guns.
Philip
 
Middle Eastern airlines require pre approval for transiting with firearms and ammunition. Sometimes it's a week in advance, sometimes a month. For a very nominal fee, and certainly not $300-400, it's worth having a travel agent deal with securing that permission.

Other things to consider when transiting through Europe are the absurd layovers. While researching my July '21 trip, I was seeing 10+ hour layovers in Frankfurt or Zurich. So I steered wayyyyy clear of Lufthansa and Swiss. Via Qatar, it's 4 hours on the way in and two hours out.

On another note, I couldn't fathom economy class seating on a flight that long. That has to be what, almost 15 hours to Abu Dhabi?
 
Sorry, some of us can't afford to fly up front...
I would rather get to Africa and hunt than to just fly there and back in business.

Just my financial situation I guess.
 
Don't worry, a lot of us here fly cattle class.

When I flew over I used Travel Express and they saved me enough to pay their fee. They also caught a problem on my return flights that I likely would not of seen had I booked the flights on my own.

If I was you I would at least call and talk to Lori or Jennifer and then make a decision
 
I have always flown cattle car class, never could swallow the costs of Business or higher. Never heard of Etihad, but had planned to fly Emirates just about now for RSA, canceled of course. But the cost was very reasonable even with a seat upcharge.
Probably the least expensive tickets I have ever had.
Would have flown from SEA to DUBAI to JO and return.
 
I have to disagree with you. Travel agents do charge a fee for their service. They get the tickets at the same or cheaper price than we can. You can also read ad nauseam here on AH about folks who did their own tickets and had disasters and some even lost their guns (at least in one case).
Additionally if you are having to use multiple airlines, like I often have to do, they get the flights all on one ticket. So if one flight is delayed or cancelled you are not screwed and have to buy all new tickets. I can not put three airlines on one ticket, they will be three separate tickets.
IF someone is in the unique position to travel on one airline the WHOLE way and they are familiar with the firearms forms then, and only then, would I recommend not using a travel agent.
For me this post sounds like a well meaning, yet uninformed person, about to make a bad decision. If he uses a travel agent, yes he's out $200, but his trip will go well IMO.
Regards,
Philip
I second that. Whatever the nominal charge, it is well worth it for the peace of mind. There are too many other things to think about when traveling, especially to foreign lands.
 
IMO, don’t try to save money in the wrong places. Use an agent, pay for VIP meet and greet, use a rifle permit expediter. You may spend an extra $500 or so. IMO, the peace of mind is well worth it.

I have been in and out so many times I’m losing count. I still pay for the services. I vividly recall one day when the Jo’Burg airport was backed up so badly there was no way we could get through security and make our flight. Our expediter got busy on his phone and took us through a restricted clearance area and on to our flight (not the normal one we all see, something very much out of sight). He was tipped very well. If we had not paid for the service we would have missed the flight. To me, it is money well spent.
 
Looking to book a trip for next summer.
Hoping the pandemic subsides...

Anyway, Looking at Etihad out of Chicago.

Anyone have experiences with Etihad and transporting firearms?
Anything that a first time"solo" traveler may appreciate?

Thanks in advance!!!
Hi Bwana,

I just wanted to chip in my two cents worth! We have honestly not used Etihad for flights for many years but I understand travel with guns should be fairly straight forward, they require advance notification in your reservation which we can send through in our system. On some airlines, we can get better pricing than you can see published but not always. Our maximum agency fee would be $125 per person on an economy ticket and we include any transit firearm permits on the way to Africa but not the permit at your destination. Give us a shout and we can look at options for you - the increase in price with Qatar you saw might have to do with availability/inventory and not a jump in the overall fares - it's complicated :rolleyes:

Hope this helps! Lori
 
My 2 cents. I have only been over twice. I used @TRAVEL EXPRESS and @riflepermits.com both times. It is worth the extra for piece of mind. There was a minor glitch on the return on my first trip and a Whatsapp message to Jennifer and in about 15 mins all was taken care of. Thats way better than you having to try and figure out what to do. Riflepermits pre approval and meet greet.
Breezed right thru customs. Guy bypassed all those waiting in line and took us straight to an agent. Preapproval is as ready and out in 10 min as SAPS. Well worth it to me.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
IMO, don’t try to save money in the wrong places. Use an agent, pay for VIP meet and greet, use a rifle permit expediter. You may spend an extra $500 or so. IMO, the peace of mind is well worth it.

I have been in and out so many times I’m losing count. I still pay for the services. I vividly recall one day when the Jo’Burg airport was backed up so badly there was no way we could get through security and make our flight. Our expediter got busy on his phone and took us through a restricted clearance area and on to our flight (not the normal one we all see, something very much out of sight). He was tipped very well. If we had not paid for the service we would have missed the flight. To me, it is money well spent.
So true! The VIP guides just cut all the lines. I don't always use them but I know where you are coming from.
Philip
 
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Thank you for all the replies!!!!

I ended up booking with Lufthansa, I think I got a pretty good deal on Premium Economy.
Far less than Delta economy and a third the cost of the lowest Business.

I was 100% on taking my gun, now I am wavering.
Is it worth it?
If I don't take my own rifle the camp gun rental plus ammo for my 12 day hunt is right at $300.00 total.

I haven't checked yet, but is it really about a $500.00 gun handling fee to transfer through FRA?
And if so, is that each way, so another $500.00 for the return home?

I have contacted Hunter Support for assistance, but was really reaching out here to get opinions of whether it is worth pursuing. If it really adds 500 to 1000 to the trip to gets guns through FRA, then it isn't worth it, end of story. That is just stupid expensive.

If that fee is not that high through Frankfurt, and I am already planning on the meet and greet through either Afton House or Hunters Support, then it isn't that much of a stretch to have them help me with the firearm, and my costs will be about the same.

Thanks in advance!!!
 

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