Toves: APC machines at Saipan airport not busted

U.S. Customs and Border Protection for NMI director Robert Havens at the arrival area of the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport where the Automated Passport Control machines are. (Bea Cabrera)

All Automated Passport Control machines at the arrival area of the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport are operational, according to Commonwealth Ports Authority board member Barrie Toves.

Toves, who chairs the board’s Airport Facilities Committee, was quick to belie reports that the machines do not function.

“All seven [machines] are operational. The sign that says ‘out of order’ is under the direction of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to divert arriving passengers [in the afternoon] to…undergo immigration processing through a CBP officer,” he said.

CPA installed the machines last July to speed up the processing time of in-bound passengers that go through U.S. Immigration upon entry, especially in the early morning flights when arriving tourists come in the thousands. Afternoon passengers go through the usual immigration processing with a CBP officer.

MVA board member Chris Nelson reported seeing the “out of order” sign on the machines during Monday’s board meeting, after arriving from Guam on the 12:10pm flight last Sunday.

“I was at the airport and…there was a sign on every single one of the [machines],” he said.

Toves said that CBP has cited two reasons for not allowing the use of the APCs in the afternoon: one, the number of arriving passengers in the afternoon flights are manageable and can go directly to a Immigration officer; and two, there are no Saipan airport ambassadors available to assist the APC users.

When there are no “airport ambassadors,” U.S. CBP does not allow the use of APCs. Currently, the airport’s three airport ambassadors are available only from 1am to 5am, with no one in the afternoon.

“What happens is when the passenger needs assistance at the APC kiosk and there is no ambassador, [U.S. Customs and Border Protection for NMI director Robert] Havens is forced to pull out one of his men from duty to help the passenger when there are a good number of customs officers in the booths that are available,” Toves said.

The Marianas Visitors Authority introduced and fielded Saipan airport ambassadors in August to assist passengers through immigration processing and Customs inspections.

Currently, CBP will continue to disallow the use of APC machines in the afternoon unless an airport ambassador is around to assist passengers.