POSSIBLE ERRONEOUS PENETRATION OF AIRSPACE; NEAR CUSTOMS VIOLATION; A NORAD TFC FERRY FLT IN FORMATION WHERE #2 MAN LOSES SIGHT OF #1 MAN AND AGAIN; PROX OF TCA.

Narrative

ITEM 1: A FRIEND AND I WERE FLYING FROM TOA TO BROWN FIELD; CA; IN AN SMA BIPLANE DURING DAYLIGHT HRS. WE HAD CALLED SAN APCH IN ORDER TO GET A CLRNC THROUGH THE TCA; AND WHILE ALMOST OVER THE VOR; WE WERE ABRUPTLY TOLD THAT RADAR SVC WAS TERMINATED; AND TO NAV THROUGH THE TCA VIA OUR OWN RESOURCES. SINCE I WAS CHKING OUT MY FRIEND ON THE SMA X; I SUGGESTED A DEV TO THE R TO KEEP US BTWN THE 2 ARPTS AS PER THE AREA CHART. HOWEVER; MY FRIEND HAD BECOME DISORIENTED AND ARGUED THAT WE TURN EASTWARD; COMING GENERALLY NEAR TO A BOUNDARY OF A TCA PROHIBITED VOLUME. HOWEVER; I BELIEVE THAT I MANAGED TO REORIENT HIM BEFORE WE WERE IN ANY DANGER OF ENTERING THE TCA. ITEM 2: UPON LNDG AT BROWN; WE THEN APCHED CUSTOMS AND INFORMED THE INSPECTOR ON DUTY THAT WE WERE GOING TO TAKE GND TRANSPORTATION TO TIJUANA (TIJ); PICK UP MY FRIEND'S SMA Y; AND THEN BRING IT BACK TO BROWN FOR REENTRY INSPECTION; ALL WITHIN ABOUT 2 HRS. WE HAD A PROB WITH MEXICAN CUSTOMS. MY FRIEND HAD NOT BEEN INFORMED BY THE MEXICAN AUTHORITIES THAT HE SHOULD HAVE OBTAINED PAPERWORK WHEN HE HAD REMOVED THE AVIONICS UPON DROPPING THE ACFT IN MEXICO. WE WERE ABLE TO PROCEED THROUGH THE CHKPOINT AFTER WE EXPLAINED THAT IF WE WERE TRYING TO GET AWAY WITH SOMETHING; WE MERELY WOULD HAVE TAKEN A TAXI ACROSS THE BORDER AND NOT WALKED NEAR THE INSPECTORS WITH THE AVIONICS RADIOS VISIBLE TO THEM. WE COLLECTED THE SMA Y; BUT MY FRIEND HAD LEFT THE AUDIO SWITCHING PANEL BACK AT TOA; SO OUR ONLY OPTION WAS TO RETURN TO BROWN WITHOUT COMS; OR NORAD. WE ASKED THE MEXICAN FLT PLAN OFFICIAL TO ADVISE BROWN TWR AND CUSTOMS OF OUR IMPENDING ARR. ON THE SUBSEQUENT TAXI OUT AND LNDG; WE GOT THE ANTICIPATED GREEN LIGHTS FROM BOTH OF THE TWRS; BUT WE GOT A LESS THAN WARM WELCOME AS WE WALKED UP TO THE CUSTOMS BUILDING. INSPECTOR STATED THAT ALTHOUGH WE HAD INFORMED HIM OF OUR IMPENDING ARR; THAT DID NOT CONSTITUTE NOTIFICATION!? MY FRIEND SPENT THE NEXT 3 HRS TRYING TO EXPLAIN THIS AND SOME PAPERWORK INCONSISTENCIES; WHILE I WATCHED ANOTHER ACQUAINTANCE SORT OUT SOME ELECTRICAL PROBS ON HIS ACFT; AND WE EVENTUALLY TOOK HIM BACK TO TOA UPON OUR DEP. ITEM 3: I KNEW THAT WE WOULD BE GOING BACK AFTER NIGHTFALL WITH THE SMA X AND THE SMA Y; AND THAT MY BUDDY COULD NOT XMIT; BUT PROBABLY COULD NAV. BY PHONE; I CONTACTED THE LCL FSS; THE SAN APCH CTL SUPVR; AND THE BROWN TWR IN AN EFFORT TO COORDINATE A FORMATION FLT BACK TO TOA. WHILE TRANSITING THE TCA; MY FRIEND HAD DISAPPEARED FROM MY 4 O'CLOCK POS. SINCE THE ACFT WAS RECENTLY REFURBISHED (AND SOME OF THE CTL SURFACES HAD BEEN REMOVED AND REPLACED); I BEGAN TO WORRY AS WE WERE OVER WATER; AND; IF HE HAD GONE DOWN; RESCUE WOULD BE DIFFICULT IN THE DARK; WITHOUT A XPONDER. I BEGAN A SERIES OF SHALLOW S-TURNS; IN ORDER TO LOCATE HIM. IN DOING SO; I MAY HAVE COME CLOSE TO THE 'WALLS' OF THE VFR CORRIDOR OF THE SAN TCA. AGAIN; I DON'T THINK THAT ANY FAR VIOLATION ACTUALLY OCCURRED ON ANY OF THESE LEGS; BUT; RATHER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY IN SUCH A FANDANGO; I THOUGHT THAT I HAD BEST ADVISE YOUR GROUP OF THESE OCCURRENCES.