mre5765

There aren't consulates at every arriving city. There are however very few plane crashes, so the consulate in LA or the embassy in D.C. can afford to send a representative to help.
The airline has details on all the passengers. The German and Japanese authorities already have all the details of incoming passengers.

benblaney

Yes, but what's the process by which a given person proves to their consulate that they are in fact of that citizenship?

Very mechanically, what happens, day by day? What happens in the first hour, first day? Where do you go, how does information flow, who has responsibility for the temporarily dispossessed?

chollie

Yes, exactly.

When I think about it, particularly if I am overseas (and many of these pax are 'overseas'), no phone, no money - what happens hour by hour? Where do I start? I get off the runway, shuttled into a room, maybe I'm 'cleared' - and then what? I may be (probably am) hungry, thirsty, tired - and I have no money, no phone, may not speak the local language, may be in a city where my country does not have a consulate, so there's no one local to call even if I could call. No money for transportation to lodging, even if pre-booked - and no money (or passport) to check in and pay at such lodging anyway.

Or I'm taken to a hospital, wake up, released - and? Again, I have no money, no phone, may or may not be a consulate or embassy in town, I'm hungry, thirsty, tired, don't speak the language, and probably emotionally shattered: where do I begin?

MSPeconomist

For years, AmEx heavily advertised their emergency services for cardholders.

Gashwin

... which is why on every flight, I always keep my passport on my person. Domestically, my driver's license is always in my wallet, as are my credit cards and cash. And my phone. I use it globally. But yeah, if someone has an answer as to what actual procedures are in such cases, that would be really informative.

LtKernelPanic

Like several others I was wondering how they would handle the customs situation. After watching the immediate aftermath on TV yesterday and reading things here and elsewhere I've come to two definite conclusions.

1. If you have an exit row seat instead of giving it a cursory glance take a minute to read the card with the information on how to operate the exit. I know I will on my flight next week.

2. Always carry an ID on you. On the plane I keep my wallet with my ID, CCs, and some cash in my front pants pocket. I don't have a passport or passport card but if I did I'd probably use one of those neck pouches or at least keep the passport card in my wallet. I know the card doesn't come with the passport unless you pay extra and they're not good for air travel but I think if you're in a situation like what happened at SFO it would help a lot to have it if your book was destroyed in the crash.

Badenoch

If you survive a crash begin by thanking your lucky stars or deity of choice that you are alive. Dead is forever. The rest is just paperwork.

Don't be one of the people who travel unprepared and unequipped for the unexpected. You can begin by starting to prepare now. Here's what I do:

When travelling outside Canada my passport is always on my person not left in my hotel room safe or stashed in the luggage bin. If I lose it I can get a replacement but when I need it I generally really need it. I've got copies in my luggage and a printable PDF copy on my email server.

I land in a country with $500-$1,000 cash either in local or easily convertible currency plus enough room on my credit cards that I can cover medical expenses, book a walk-on, first-class flight home or the entire middle row in Y class if I have to come home on a stretcher as happened to a co-worker years ago.

Nothing as dramatic as a plane crash on final has ever happened to me but on more than one occasion immediate access to my passport and the cash helped quickly resolve what might have been a more serious situation.

InkUnderNails

This is one of the reasons I have considered getting a Scottvest. In any emergency, it would be a grab and wear item, preloaded with all of those essentials. The people that I have talked to that have one swear by them. It could worn on the plane or at your feet ready to grab.

piper28

While obviously not an exact comparison, my experience after the Crown Princess ship tilt, for the customs process, I found that it at most it seemed to be a cursory experience when we got off the ship after the cruise ended early. We walked off the ship and there was a very disinterested person collecting the blue forms (and quite frankly, you could have walked off without turning one in, they weren't really paying attention). There were no immigration checks at all that I saw (but then, it was a US port, and we were US citizens, so I'm not sure how non-US nationals were handled, wasn't exactly a high priority for me to pay attention to that).

Obviously, there's a number of differences between the situations. There was obviously no problems with damaged paperwork for people. And it was a round-trip US itinerary, although obviously ended in a different city than originally planned. But it means everyone that was on the ship had already been cleared into the US at some point before taking the trip. (I think we might have had a somewhat cursory immigration check that morning when we left the ship too, but my memory is a bit vague. It definitely wasn't anything much more than a quick glance at the passport.)

So like I said, obviously different situations, but a small datapoint.

CDTraveler

I think you're imaging things that are worse than reality. Is there an airport accepting commercial flights that doesn't have Internet access? Do you seriously believe the airport would not do as much as possible to assist pax after a crash, up to and including letting them use a computer and a printer? Or that first responders would demand ID and insurance before triaging and treating patients?

The odds of the airline picking up your immediate costs of food, lodging and access to your home country's embassy are also pretty good, and somehow I doubt the embassy would charge you for the replacement passport after an air crash. That just wouldn't be good policy (or good PR).

Dianne47

Savvy travelers wear their most important documents and cards on their person when traveling. I have several very small purses and pouches to choose from. I wear passport, IDs, credit cards, cash, iPod & earbuds, and itinerary cross-body. I also own several Scottevest items (vests, jacket) to hold even more. It's important to do this for safety in case of an emergency and to keep someone from stealing things from my tote (under the seat in front of me or in the overhead).

mre5765

The same process by which someone who loses their passport overseas then proceeds to prove to their consulate that they are who they say they are. This is going to vary by country. E.g.,

https://www.passports.gov.au/Web/Bro...tOrStolen.aspx

says Australians have to go through an entire passport application process.

Such a process is going to require proof of citizenship (e.g. birth certificate) which presumably is safely in ones home.

Your profile lists your base airport as COS. As you know, many people lost identity documents in our area due to wildfires destroying homes. There are processes for replacing these documents.

Quite. Lose the purse before you get on the plane lest to lose it before you get off the plane.

tigerhunt2011

I'm an ignorant 20 year old (not afraid to admit it :P ) and I need someone to explain to me what is wrong about grabbing your things? I'm asking in the context of like having your duffel under the seat in front of you, and neither seat is damaged. I can understand abandoning your personal items if you're blocking an aisle or exit to do so...

I just feel like if I were in that scenario, and I was physically able to do so, I would absolutely grab my carryon containing my laptop, phone, chargers, credit cards, passport, etc; essentially my life when I'm traveling...

warthog1984

Simply put: Life Safety >> Anything Else. If it is not on your person, it's not worth your or anybody else's life to deal with it. You can think "it'll just take a few seconds", but with the risk of fire, if you can't grab it on the run it's too risky.

Badenoch

With all respect if I am behind you in an emergency and you are diddling around trying to grab your stuff you will and I mean WILL be moving whether you have your laptop or not.