Passport Control at the Start of the Kite Safari
New Regulations are now in place in Egypt, so every beginning of a Kite Safari is marked with a new security procedure by the Coast Guard, where all passports and all passengers are checked and counted. Let’s go more in details, and let’s see how this normally affects the departure of our yacht from the marina.
A picture of your passport – why I need it
A week before any kite safari, I request a picture of your passport for the coast guard to create a permission slip for the yacht to leave the marina and go on a kite safari. It may seem weird, but the Coast Guard needs to know exactly who is coming on board.
Collecting all passports
One important thing I must not forget is to collect all passports from my team and from the kiters on the first night. Then, I check if all passport numbers match the ones listed on the permission slip. If I forget to collect a passport at night, I’ll have to do it very early in the morning (and wake you up). Normally, I collect the passports at night and check the numbers early on Sunday morning. If everything matches, we start waiting.
The Coast Guard comes on board
Normally around 8/9am the Coast Guard comes on board. They will check if all numbers of all passports match the ones on the permission slip, will check all the crew, and will eventually ask all of us to be on deck for a final head count. If the head count is correct, we will have the green light to sail!
Complications and delays
If you send me an old passport picture, and show up in the marina with a different passport, our departure will have to be delayed, cause the permission slip will have to be modified. So please don’t do that.
If you miss your flight and can’t come last second, we will need again to modify the permission slip.
Why is all this necessary?
The whole procedure for departing from the marina used to be much easier, but lately, controls have become more strict. There have been a few accidents at sea involving diving boats, which may have prompted the Coast Guard to review their procedures.
All they want is for us to be safe, and extra safety is always welcome, even if it means short delays.
