In October 2023, I enjoyed a hunt in the Caprivi Strip, flying with my own rifle from London Heathrow to Katima Mulilo Mpacha.
Here is how I got there - note that this info is most relevant to UK residents and might not apply to other nationals.
Overall, I found it time consuming and a little stressful, but worth it to hunt with my own rifle. Nearly everyone I met in the process was friendly, polite and professional.
So, do your research, allow lots of time, have your papers ready, be patient and SMILE! Be the happy hunter that everyone wants to help!
Oh, and remember - you do not need special clearance from the UK government to take your personal rifle overseas temporarily. The FAC is effectively your temporary export permit.
1. Booking, international
* For international flights, I used Qatar Airways, as advised by my PH
* My flight was from London Heathrow to Doha, then on to Windhoek
* QA do take firearms and ammo, but require permission in advance
2. Booking, domestic
* For the internal flight, I used Airlink
* Airlink fly an infrequent service from Windhoek Eros to Katima Mulilo Mpacha
* Airlink take firearms but, again, require permission in advance
* There is a section on the booking form to book a rifle on the flight
3. Weights and measures
* I measured my rifle case and ammo box
* I also weighed my ammo, rifle and cases
* This info was handy when talking to airline agents
4. Getting permission, international
* With 8 weeks to go, I emailed Qatar Airways to ask how to get permission to fly with a rifle
* This key info is not laid out on their website, annoyingly
* I got an automated response, but it did include a phone number
* I called the phone number several times to ask for permission, but got no response
* After several weeks and a lot of expensive calls, I was getting irritated
* With days to go, I got lucky
* I contacted an agent who seemed to know exactly what was needed
* I sent all the necessary details and soon got an email back confirming permission to fly
5. Getting permission, domestic
* Getting permission to fly with a rifle from Airlink was very easy
* I called the booking centre, gave the relevant info and confirmed weights and measures via email
* Permission took minutes
* I insisted that the agent sent me an email document confirming permission was given
* She was happy to provide this
6. Flying out
* On travel day, I arrived at Heathrow with 4 hours in hand
* I also had multiple copies of all documents - passport, FAC, tickets, emails etc
*.The rifle was locked in a heavy Peli case, with ammo in a locked box in my hold bag
* Staff at the Qatar desk were rather busy and harassed, but seemed friendly and professional
* A senior looking lady took charge of me and completed reams of paperwork
* When all was done, a security guard was summoned and he took the rifle through security
* I went through and met him at the customs post on the far side
* Customs examined rifle and ammo, looked at my FAC and took notes
* Finally, the guard took the rifle and hold bag and carried them away
* I was ready!
7. Arrival in Windhoek
* Rifle and hold bag were checked right through to Windhoek
* I collected the hold bag and ammo in arrivals and declared the ammo to customs
* The customs guy waved me through, not very interested
* My rifle was waiting for me at the police post outside the airport
* The police checked my rifle, ammo and documents and issued a temporary import permit
* This document is effectively your FAC in Namibia - keep it safe!
8. Internal flight
* I arrived at Eros airport with lots of time to spare
* The efficient Airlink people were expecting me
* A small error had been made - my rifle had been logged as a “weapon”, with a large surcharge
* It should have been logged as “sporting equipment“, with a small surcharge of only N50
* The Airlink people were happy to correct the error and were very good
* There were some police procedures, but all completed reasonably fast
* Having my PH on hand at Eros was a help, as he could communicate on my behalf in Afrikaans
9. Arrival at Mpacha
* Again very easy
* Note that facilities at Mpacha are limited, with few barriers or security arrangements
* So, you need to be on the ball to grab your rifle case before someone else does
10. Flying home
* When I arrived back at Windhoek airport, staff were expecting me
* A lady saw my rifle case, addressed me by name and took me to one side to start work
* With paperwork done, I took rifle and bag to the police post
* A policeman took my import permit off me and stamped the luggage labels
* I then took rifle and bag bag back to the airline desk where they were taken away from me
11. Arrival at Heathrow
* After an epic flight home, I noted that my things did not appear to be on the luggage carousel
* I decided to head for the customs office, where I met a security guard who had custody of them
* In the office, I realised that I had lost the key to the padlock on the rifle case
* Customs officers quickly produced a set of bolt cutters and snipped the lock off
* Serial numbers were checked, ammo counted and records taken
* I was free to go!
Here is how I got there - note that this info is most relevant to UK residents and might not apply to other nationals.
Overall, I found it time consuming and a little stressful, but worth it to hunt with my own rifle. Nearly everyone I met in the process was friendly, polite and professional.
So, do your research, allow lots of time, have your papers ready, be patient and SMILE! Be the happy hunter that everyone wants to help!
Oh, and remember - you do not need special clearance from the UK government to take your personal rifle overseas temporarily. The FAC is effectively your temporary export permit.
1. Booking, international
* For international flights, I used Qatar Airways, as advised by my PH
* My flight was from London Heathrow to Doha, then on to Windhoek
* QA do take firearms and ammo, but require permission in advance
2. Booking, domestic
* For the internal flight, I used Airlink
* Airlink fly an infrequent service from Windhoek Eros to Katima Mulilo Mpacha
* Airlink take firearms but, again, require permission in advance
* There is a section on the booking form to book a rifle on the flight
3. Weights and measures
* I measured my rifle case and ammo box
* I also weighed my ammo, rifle and cases
* This info was handy when talking to airline agents
4. Getting permission, international
* With 8 weeks to go, I emailed Qatar Airways to ask how to get permission to fly with a rifle
* This key info is not laid out on their website, annoyingly
* I got an automated response, but it did include a phone number
* I called the phone number several times to ask for permission, but got no response
* After several weeks and a lot of expensive calls, I was getting irritated
* With days to go, I got lucky
* I contacted an agent who seemed to know exactly what was needed
* I sent all the necessary details and soon got an email back confirming permission to fly
5. Getting permission, domestic
* Getting permission to fly with a rifle from Airlink was very easy
* I called the booking centre, gave the relevant info and confirmed weights and measures via email
* Permission took minutes
* I insisted that the agent sent me an email document confirming permission was given
* She was happy to provide this
6. Flying out
* On travel day, I arrived at Heathrow with 4 hours in hand
* I also had multiple copies of all documents - passport, FAC, tickets, emails etc
*.The rifle was locked in a heavy Peli case, with ammo in a locked box in my hold bag
* Staff at the Qatar desk were rather busy and harassed, but seemed friendly and professional
* A senior looking lady took charge of me and completed reams of paperwork
* When all was done, a security guard was summoned and he took the rifle through security
* I went through and met him at the customs post on the far side
* Customs examined rifle and ammo, looked at my FAC and took notes
* Finally, the guard took the rifle and hold bag and carried them away
* I was ready!
7. Arrival in Windhoek
* Rifle and hold bag were checked right through to Windhoek
* I collected the hold bag and ammo in arrivals and declared the ammo to customs
* The customs guy waved me through, not very interested
* My rifle was waiting for me at the police post outside the airport
* The police checked my rifle, ammo and documents and issued a temporary import permit
* This document is effectively your FAC in Namibia - keep it safe!
8. Internal flight
* I arrived at Eros airport with lots of time to spare
* The efficient Airlink people were expecting me
* A small error had been made - my rifle had been logged as a “weapon”, with a large surcharge
* It should have been logged as “sporting equipment“, with a small surcharge of only N50
* The Airlink people were happy to correct the error and were very good
* There were some police procedures, but all completed reasonably fast
* Having my PH on hand at Eros was a help, as he could communicate on my behalf in Afrikaans
9. Arrival at Mpacha
* Again very easy
* Note that facilities at Mpacha are limited, with few barriers or security arrangements
* So, you need to be on the ball to grab your rifle case before someone else does
10. Flying home
* When I arrived back at Windhoek airport, staff were expecting me
* A lady saw my rifle case, addressed me by name and took me to one side to start work
* With paperwork done, I took rifle and bag to the police post
* A policeman took my import permit off me and stamped the luggage labels
* I then took rifle and bag bag back to the airline desk where they were taken away from me
11. Arrival at Heathrow
* After an epic flight home, I noted that my things did not appear to be on the luggage carousel
* I decided to head for the customs office, where I met a security guard who had custody of them
* In the office, I realised that I had lost the key to the padlock on the rifle case
* Customs officers quickly produced a set of bolt cutters and snipped the lock off
* Serial numbers were checked, ammo counted and records taken
* I was free to go!
