Shipments done by Travellers

Great guy great service we now have a new friend in Nepal.
We will be back to see him again

Two 2006 BMW R1200GS's with all our panniers and gear, 680 kg total sent as one shipment on two pallets, very professional job, carrier was Air Canada

This was my first air shipment with a bike and I can't believe how easy Sandra made it for me. She had me do a little paperwork, have a few copies made and made an appointment for me to ride the bike to the airport where I removed the mirrors, windshield, let a little air out of the tires and disconnected the battery. The bike was already very low on gas so I didn't have to drain any more. Everyone was ready for me at the airport and the bike was on a pallet and wrapped and I was on my way in about 2 1/2 hours - that included me doing the prep work. The next day I went downtown to pay and that was done (;including going to the bank); in less than one hour.

Sandra made the entire process painless - use her to ship anywhere from Buenous Aires.

We spoke to Jeewan on the Thursday, the bike was crated on the Sunday, flown on Monday and arrived Tuesday.

Jeewan was very confident and quick, and had the crate made for us close to his office. He measured the bike but his measurements were much bigger than crates that we'd had made before, so he agreed to cover any difference in price if the volumetric weight was greater than the actual weight of a previous shipping. The vol weight turned out to be 400+ Kg and the actual 333 Kg, so we paid the previous shipment weight of 365 Kg. Our gamble paid off. Sounds complex, but basically make sure that the crate is made as small as possible by measuring carefully yourself before you approach him.

The bike was a Honda Transalp 650 with bags and bike gear in the crate too.

I wouldn't fully trust Jeewan's confidence in when the bike will be shipped. Believe it only when the shipment is booked with the airline.

We followed the truck with the crate to the KTM airport and a dozen willing pairs of hands helped at every stage. Eagle Eyes rely on you having your own straps/rope, tape and bubble wrap, so be warned. The whole process was very quick (90 minutes), incuding carnet, customs check, weighing and x-ray. No-one wanted a backsheesh or a tip, apart from maybe Jeewan's brother (he didn't get one). Battery disconnected and 'yes, I've taken out all the fuel, honest'.

Istanbul has a very busy airport cargo terminal, so it took a full day of running around to release the bike. Pakistan airways that flew the bike use Havas cargo handling, but there are 2 other main handlers. Everyone was very helpful and friendly, but it would have been impossible or have taken several days/weeks without the help of a turkish speaking friend. Adil and Mehmet from the Istanbul bike club spent the whole day helping, bless them.

We needed to show insurance, tax number and police proof of good behaviour docs, so sort them out before heading to the airport!

Insurance is difficult, and should be done with an agent in town. The computer system doesn't allow for anything but turkish format number plates, so several phone calls to head office and a lot of patience were needed. Insurance is very cheap.

The tax form is available from the local tax office and is free. If you get one, it lasts 99 years and allows you to buy a house!

The local police station will do a computer check and provide a document free of charge while you wait - or lock you up.

The Havas handling charge was 130 TL
The storage charge was 434 TL
No other charges apart from insurance.

There are dozens of fixers wandering about the terminal who will help you for a fee. If you use one, have the above documents ready first, and agree a fee with the fixer (app $30-40). Also make sure that you can understand each other.

Once the crate appeared from the warehouse, we cracked it open in the carpark and left all the rubbish with the cargo manager's blessing. He told me off when I tried to clear up.

All in all a good if tiring experience.

Details as above. Bike was held in Cape Town for 2 weeks to postpone pickup in norway for my own reasons. Costs in South Africa included them crating the bike for me. Wooden, certified crate.
Exact costs at South African end: 5730 ZAR (816 USD)
Exact costs at Norwegian end:1351 NOK (241 USD)

A few problems with the bike being transshipped in Hamburg, Germany. Got caught up in customs due to some missing paperwork. Made a delay of approx 1 week longer than it should have been.