Airport of Entry

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

An Airport of Entry (AoE) is an airport that provides customs and immigration services for incoming flights. These services allow the airport to serve as an initial port of entry for foreign visitors arriving in a country. In the United States, there are many Airports of Entry; O'Hare International Airport serving flights arriving at the Eastern seaboard and Los Angeles International serving the Western Seaboard.

In the United Kingdom, the principal AoE is London Heathrow, also handling the duties of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in first-point immigration for passengers.

The word "international" in an airport's name usually means that it is an airport of entry, but many (if not most) airports of entry do not use it. Airports of entry can range from large urban airports with heavy scheduled passenger service, like John F. Kennedy International Airport, to small rural airports serving general aviation exclusively. Often, smaller airports of entry are located near an existing port of entry such as a bridge or seaport.