Thank you Tim for the invitation.
Is it a hassle to bring your own double over from the states?
I've done it several times. First, you need to make sure that the airline in question will accept guns. United will; American won't. (American is a partner with British Airways. If I recall correctly, BA is OK with guns but the issue is either American or some of its regional partners.) Extra cost unless you can get by with just a carryon plus your gun, because otherwise the gun case is a 2nd checked bag. Charges vary.
Second, you need to have arranged in advance for a visitors' shotgun permit. Some paperwork required with the local British police. If it's a commercial shoot, the place you're shooting should be able to take care of that for you. But you need to work on it well in advance.
It's always worked relatively smoothly for me . . . although I did have an anxious moment when my shotgun permit described my gun as an OU rather than a sxs. Scottish customs asked me to open the case and show them the permit, which I did. The gun was in sleeves. They didn't ask to see it, just the permit. I did have a corrected permit waiting with our driver, but managed to dodge the extra hassle.
Re shoot or don't shoot at birds: The one rule you don't violate is the blue sky rule: You need to see sky around the bird. You've got beaters who are potentially in the line of fire if you violate that rule. Low birds, even if against the sky . . . if that's what you're mostly getting on a particular drive, there probably won't be much complaint if you take one or two. But if the guns take too many low birds, you run up the cost of the shoot. The theory is that you pick ones that present some degree of challenge--which of course varies depending on your level of skill with a shotgun.
Last edited by L. Brown; 01/25/17 10:38 AM.
