Today I would like to explain you how to complete the airport of departure field correctly according to letter of credit rules.
Airport of departure is one of the key elements of an air waybill and it needs to be completed carefully when dealing with a letter of credit, because banks find discrepancies on the transport documents more frequently than any other shipping documents under letter of credit presentations.
If you need more fundamental information in regards to airport of departure and how it functions on an air waybill, please have a look at my previous article "What does airport of departure and airport of destination mean on an air waybill?"
- According to letter of credit rules an air transport document, air waybill, is to indicate the airport of departure stated in the letter of credit.
- I have mentioned on my previous article that the airport of departure can be stated on the air waybill by using three letter IATA codes instead of mentioning the airport name in full (for example, LHR instead of London Heathrow Airport). This kind of presentation is acceptable as per letter of credit rules.
- Sometimes letters of credit indicate the name of the country in which the airport of departure is located. But according the letter of credit rules the name of the country need not be stated on the air waybill even if it was indicated on the letter of credit.
- When a credit indicates a geographical area or range of airports of departure (for example, “Any European Airport” or “Hamburg, Bremen, Bremerhaven airport”), an air transport document is to indicate the actual airport of departure, which is to be within that geographical area or range of airports. An air transport document need not indicate the geographical area.
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Swift OUTPUT FIN 700 Issue of a Documentary Credit
Sender : CAIXESBBXXX
CAIXABANK S.A.
(COMMERCIAL BRANCH)
BARCELONA ES
Receiver : HABALT22XXX
SWEDBANK
(ALL TURKEY OFFICES)
HELSINKI FI
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27: Sequence of Total
1/1
40A: Form of Documentary Credit
IRREVOCABLE
40E: Applicable Rules
UCPURR LATEST VERSION
43P: Partial Shipments
NOT ALLOWED
43T: Transhipment
ALLOWED
44E: Port of Loading/Airport of Departure
HELSINKI, TURKU OR OULU AIRPORT FINLAND
44F: Port of Discharge/Airport of Destination
BARCELONA AIRPORT
44C: Latest Date of Shipment
150512 (12.May.2015)
45A: Description of Goods &/or Services
AUTO AIR FILTER AS PER PROFORMA INVOICE NO.:P-121-7 L04 DATED 03/07/2014.CPT, BARCELONA AIRPORT, INCOTERMS 2010.
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| Above figure shows airport of departure as Helsinki Port, Finland. Presentation of Helsinki Airport with IATA Codes as indicated on the left upper side is acceptable as per L/C rules. |
