Customs Booming at Two Florida Airports

In the first four months since U.S. Customs operations began at Naples Municipal Airport, 183 aircraft have been cleared through the new facility. “We’ve seen a higher number of flights originating from Canada than we expected,” said Ryan Frost, director of airport operations, “but most flights are coming from the Caribbean.” The 4,142-sq-ft customs facility building includes a passenger waiting area, offices, an interview room, a search-hold area and locker room and is staffed from 10:30 a.m. until 7 p.m. seven days a week.

At Opa Locka Executive Airport customs operations have been expanded from 9 p.m. to midnight to meet the needs of arriving international aircraft. “This change is a fantastic benefit to aircraft that were previously forced to use large commercial airports when arriving internationally because of the time restriction,” said Fabio Alexander, CEO of Miami Executive Aviation and chief marketing officer of Ross Aviation.