Posted on 03/07/2009 6:05:27 AM PST by KeyLargo
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
In December, three government helicopters trailed the shown ultralight that had 350 pounds of marijuana strapped it and hit power lines before crashing in Tucson, Ariz.
Not surprised by this...
I’m surprised these drug lords havn’t adopted something from the PLO or other groups that send hundreds of rockets into Israel, with some electronics and small mods these rockets can be steered, and I know for a fact the viability of building 1/4 scale RC aircraft that can operate with an on board camera. They can fly across the border and literally drop the cargo and return just like a bomber run. Or just go full scale.
AVIATION PING
Geez, those drug lords sure got some dedicated employees.
IIRC he finally was reduced to ***parachuting*** from his planes with his big loads of coke, and on his final "drop" he had a parachute failure and plastered directly into someone's suburban driveway. Ouch.
Sally Denton wrote the definitive book about Thornton and his gang (he was a Lexington KY policeman), and it's a really great read:
The Bluegrass Conspiracy: An Inside Story of Power, Greed, Drugs and Murder .
Since our gov’t openly promotes drug smuggling (the 500 lb. “catch and release” rule for grass brought in by land ,, tons of cocaine shipped in by rail, see the “rite rail” congressional testimony) and I need the cash I’d be pleased to offer my services on a one-time basis for $$$,$$$.$$ and I am multi-instrument.
A standard Cessna , stripped for weight and equipped with a ballistic recovery system could “land” anywhere , even places where a helicopter cannot follow due to dense growth.
Sort of like a WW2 “buzz bomb” except it deploys a parachute upon a GPS coordinate?
How long until the RATS make ultralights illegal to stop this?
My thought,too.The article reads like a rationale for outlawing ultralights.
Jose, if you deliver these drugs, I will pay you MANY pesos AND let your family live!
“How long until the RATS make ultralights illegal to stop this? “
Um..It’s Mexican ultralights coming into the US.
RATS don't care about reason. Logic isn't their strength.
Low altitude, slow moving, easy to hit TARGETS!
Got that right. Followed to its extreme conclusion, that "logic" would dictate that everyone wear handcuffs and belly chains at all times in public.
"It's for your own good!"
I do not know of any “Mexican ultralights” manufacturer.
“Um..Its Mexican ultralights coming into the US.”
Ultralight flights new method to haul drugs
Craft can evade radar along border, feds say
by Dennis Wagner - Feb. 17, 2009 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic
NOGALES, Ariz. - On Oct. 10, Jesus Iriarte hauled a load of pot from Sonora across the U.S. border.
The Mexican national was like hundreds of other drug couriers except for one important distinction: He transported the marijuana by strapping it to a motorized hang glider, something that looks like a lawn mower in the sky.
Federal customs agents say radar-dodging ultralights may be an emerging trend among drug smugglers looking for new ways to outwit increased surveillance.
But the planes aren’t the safest strategy.
In the past four months, three of the kite-winged aircraft crashed while hauling loads of marijuana into Arizona.
There is no telling how many other pilots successfully delivered loads, but the outcome for those who failed is telling:
Juan Hernandez Torres, 34, of San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, died Nov. 18 when his machine smashed into a Yuma lettuce field.
An unidentified pilot clipped a power line in December while being chased by a Customs and Border Protection drone. Because the suspect was paralyzed in the crash near Tucson, prosecutors elected to deport him to Mexico rather than file charges.
The third smuggler, Iriarte, awaits a prison sentence after pleading guilty in U.S. District Court. He was caught after crash-landing in Marana, nearly 80 miles north of the border.
Rick Crocker, deputy special agent in charge for Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Tucson, said the low-cost, low-flying aircraft present a new challenge for drug interdiction, not to mention Homeland Security.
“The ultralight smuggling may be due to the hardening of the border (with greater enforcement),” Crocker added. “We’re trying to get a handle on it.”
Excerpt
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/02/17/20090217ultralight0217.html
If dumb shits here didn’t buy the junk THERE WOULDN’T BE A PROBLEM!
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