Florida’s Boca Raton Airport can now clear international aircraft arrivals, with the opening of a new Customs and Border Protection facility there. Previously, aircraft heading to the airport from outside the U.S. were required to stop at another airport to clear first. The $4.5 million cost of the 4,400-sq-ft stand-alone facility, which began operations at the end of last month, was mostly covered by state DOT grant, with the remainder picked up by the airport authority.

The facility will provide fee-based services Thursday through Monday from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., although operators should verify before arrival. After-hours processing is available, but with an additional callout fee. Carrie Lauer was the pilot of the first jet to be processed at the facility, a Privaira Private Aviation charter flight returning to its home base from Grand Cayman.

“We appreciate the efforts of CBP, Boca Raton Airport management, and others involved with building the new facility, which gives business aircraft operators an additional option for clearing customs when flying into this region,” said NBAA senior manager of security and facilitation Sarah Wolf. “For aircraft operators based at Boca Raton, or for those with Boca Raton as their final destination, the facility improves safety by eliminating the need for an extra flight leg following a long international flight.”