[en] DOE placed its transportation services contract with NAC International in April 1997 and awarded the first task to NAC for return of TRIGA fuel in July 1997. This initial shipment of TRIGA fuel, scheduled for early 1998, is reflective of many of the difficulties faced by DOE and the transportation services contractor in return of the foreign research reactor fuel to the United States: 1) First time use of the INEEL dry storage facility for receipt of research reactor fuel; 2) Safety analysis of the INEEL facility for the NAC-LWT shipping cask; 3) Cask certification for a mixed loading of high enriched and low enriched TRIGA fuels; 4) Cask loading for standard length and extended length rods (instrumented and fuel follower control rods); 5) Design and certification of a canister for degraded TRIGA fuel; 6) Initial port entry through the Naval Weapons Station in Concord, California; 7) Initial approval of the rail route for shipment from Concord to INEEL. In this presentation we describe the overall activities involved in the first TRIGA shipment, discuss the actions required to resolve the difficulties identified above, and provide a status report of the initial shipment from South Korea and Indonesia. Recommendations are presented as to actions that can be taken by the research reactor operator, by DOE, and by the transportation services agent to speed and simplify the transportation process. Actions having the potential to reduce costs to DOE and to reactor operators from high-income economies will be identified. (author)