Homeland Security Agents Force Plane to Land in San Antonio

WOAI ^ | 1/24/2005 | ElephantinTexas

[ElephantinTexas]

This is my first post so I hope I got it right.

This is breaking here in San Anonio. A single engine plane has been forced down at Stenson Field south of San Antonio. Homeland Security, DPS and SAPD are on the scene. They are waiting for a Chinese tranlator but they have Chinese illegals in custody and said that the pilot was someone Homeland Security has been looking for.

I'll post more as it comes available.

[JustAnotherSavage]

Thanks. They're still running the ticker on CNN.

[billorites]

It's a matter of having the right pajamas.

[El Gato]

There is downward looking radar like from an AWACS/JSTAR aircraft from above.

JSTARS is for ground targets, although they could probably see helicopters and slow moving aircraft as well. There are also tethered balloon borne radars, similar to ground based air-route surveillance radar, but with longer effective range against low flying targets because of their higher altitude.

[El Gato]

Around here we have something called an Aerostat. I don't know how it works and it looks like a blimp connected by guy-wires.

Sort of like this?

>

They are just big balloons, with the radar inside the balloon envelope. They are indeed tethered to the ground. Information can be fed into NORAD regional control centers. The upper photo is from near Marfa Texas, the other from Cudjoe Key Florida.

[ElephantinTexas]

Here's the 5 o'clock live update from San Antonio. KENS 5 TV (www.mysa.com) has now released the name of the captured pilot.

His name is Christian Delgado-Gomez (jeez, where do they get these names?) Age:22 and he is here on an expired visa from Mexico! He's being held on four separate counts of human smuggling. The interview with Hameed continues to sound like he's just playing dumb and they found Alyce Taylor. She was standing in her doorway already playing the 'race' card saying that they are being picked on because of her husbands 'Arabic' sounding name. She also was saying that most everything on the internet is false. False, Alyce?? Are you playing that down too because the both of you are being looked at because of a Lebanese website and your threats on the CIA, hmmmmmmm??

[El Gato]

A hellfire would have worked quite nicely..

Maybe, but that's an air to ground antitank weapon. Hitting an aircraft in flight is harder. A sidewinder (AIM-9) or, for smaller launching aircraft, an air launched Stinger would be more appropriate, and effective.

[Cindy]

Thank you ElephantinTexas.
I appreciate that update.

[El Gato]

What makes you think we don't have an air defense system?

Because we essentially don't. Very few interceptor aircraft on alert. Prior to 9-11 no SAMs on alert in US. Even now only a few Avengers with Stinger and guns around high risk targets from time to time. (DC probably all the time).

That was one of the "tactical" problems on 9-11, no assets close enough to the problem to make an intercept before the targets reached their targets.

[Coop]

Because we essentially don't.

No. We just don't have one robust enough for your tastes.

[El Gato]

The enemy of my enemy is my friend? China-Arab partners?

Of course, haven't you read FReeper Jeff Head's Dragon Fury series?

[El Gato]

How many air miles is Stinson from Crawford?

It's about 161 mi air miles. (Used lat/lon for a flying Ranch near Crawfor). Crawford is just north of Fort Hood, and west of Waco. Stinson is in the southwest part of San Antonio.

[rdl6989]

That's a real good post, welcome to FR. The fact that the people on the plane are Chinese and are being sought by the FBI is interesting, but also confusing. The threat to Boston involving Chinese was a hoax (apparently).
See below link.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1328331/posts

[El Gato]

The second plane was forced down at Bergstrom, AFB in Austin, TX

There is no Bergstrom AFB, although there was until around 1990 or so. Now the runways are part of the new Austin-Bergstrum Int'l Airport. AFAIK, no military presence there at all, not even Guard or Reserve (It was a reserve only base for many years, flew fighter aircraft, but the squardon, part of the 301st TFW IIRC, was eliminated when the F-4 Phantoms went away. The other Squadron (and the Wing) converted to F-16s at Carswell AFB, (Now JRB NAS Ft. Worth).

[El Gato]

No. We just don't have one robust enough for your tastes.

That's what the qualifier "essentially" ment. We have one, but it's not robust enough for much of anything.

[Coop]

Well, we'll have to disagree on that one. The folks at NORAD have a complex and impressive system in place. It just doesn't (to my knowledge) include strategic SAM systems throughout the nation. But that doesn't mean those types of weapons aren't available for protection.

[ElephantinTexas]

Thanks for the update. I was listening to three tv's and trying to take note at the same time. I heard Bergstrom and I lived up in Austin years ago and assumed they were talking about the old AFB.

They forced that plane down with three Mexican Nationals and a later search turned up 108lbs. of pot.

[jriemer]

Other officials said that the yet unknown pilot was smuggling the Chinese illegals in for around $100,000 a pop and the plane left Eagle Pass, Tx. last night.

$100k is considerably more than a "spot price" I found for smuggling someone by land from Mexico to NY of $5k in the Tuscon Citizen:

"An Arizona prison guard is in federal custody, charged with smuggling illegal immigrants, and has admitted involvement in a smuggling organization, according to federal court records....One of his passengers, who is being held as a material witness, told agents he had paid $3,500 to smugglers and was to pay $1,500 more when he got to New York state."
AZ State prison guard was smuggling immigrants, records say - Tucson Citizen - 5/15/2004

Those four Chinese nationals really wanted to get to their desination within the US BAD without involving the hassles of the domestic airlines.

[nasamn777]

Check this out. There are smuggling rings run by the Chinese mafia operating out of Fujian. They smuggle Chinese to Latin America/South America and then to the US. Probably those who were on the plane were trying to take the cheap route -- angering their smugglers. But then again, maybe China is smuggling in a battalion in advance of the invasion of Taiwan. I hope you all have your weapons a ready.

http://www.washtimes.com/world/20050123-115744-3417r.htm

[Turbopilot]

A Second Class Medical Certificate is required to (legally) fly as an instructor, or any other flying for hire. It's valid for 24 calendar months, then another examination by a flight surgeon is necessary.

Minor point: a second class medical is not required to instruct. If the person being instructed meets the legal requirements to make the flight alone (i.e. has the right ratings, medical, etc.) the instructor doesn't need any medical certificate, and if not (e.g. a new student) the instructor needs a third class.

Also, while a second class is good for 24 months, it only permits operations requiring a second class (i.e. flying for hire, other than in an airline environment) for the first 12 months. During months 13-24 it can only be used for operations requiring a third class medical.

Nevertheless, the aircraft if not the pilot made the flight illegal since the triennial papers never got to it in 2002. Without those, the registration and therefore the airworthiness certificate were invalid. To say nothing of the fact that the pilot may have been smuggling illegal aliens. At that point FAR violations are secondary. :-p

[LowInMo]

Watch Bayourad. Why he has not been ZOTTED is anyones guess. He is a strong supporter of illegal aliens.