Are crew members' passports stamped? Interesting facts about international travel

Aircraft crew members must have a passport that allows them to travel without restriction to every country served by the airline. Even if a pilot or flight attendant is not going to fly international routes, they must still maintain their legal ability to travel.

Simple Flying writes about this. Pilots from the airline's country of origin usually have no problem with this rule, but foreign pilots' right to travel sometimes limits which airlines they can apply to.

For example, it will be almost impossible for a certified pilot with only a Russian passport to work for an airline outside of a few countries in 2023.

Surprisingly, pilots and flight attendants rarely have their passports stamped when they enter another country. Crews are almost always admitted to international destinations through special employee arrival portals with expedited checks.

At major international airports, crews board buses at the bottom of the jet bridge, which transports them to a special crew processing area away from travellers. Passports should always be on hand, but they are often not stamped.

Equally important to passports for the legal operation of international flights is the General Declaration Form, or GenDec. Usually, the captain is responsible for it. The GenDec is a document filled out by the airline and contains a list of crew members, the number of passengers and other important information. At least two copies of the GenDec are generated: one for the departure station and one for presentation upon arrival.

Sometimes, pilots and flight attendants accidentally enter a foreign country without passports. Despite the difficult situation, it is certainly not the end of the world. A crew member abroad without a passport will contact the chief pilot's office when they realise their mistake. The office has copies of the crew members' documents and can send these identification documents to the authorities in the country concerned.