LAREDO, Texas (AP) - Top brass were on hand Tuesday for the local debut of the latest addition to
U.S. Border Patrol surveillance -- a helicopter that can aim invisible floodlights at suspects and tote
multi-ton drug seizures across mountaintops.
The Border Patrol's Laredo sector got the 10th of 13 American Eurocopter "AStars" to be distributed
along the U.S.' northern and southern borders.
The latest helicopter brings to seven the number along the U.S.-Mexico border, four in Texas. All were
attained as part of a $26 million emergency funding package Congress approved for counterterrorism
efforts following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The Border Patrol used an existing U.S. Customs Service contract to avoid the time-consuming
process of researching providers and accepting bids, said Mike Hester, deputy chief of air operations
in El Paso. Each helicopter will cost about $2 million, he said.
El Paso is roughly at the midpoint of the U.S.-Mexico border and is the center of Border Patrol aviation
training, Hester said. Pilots for the helicopters already have either military or civilian flying experience
and have logged several years with the Border Patrol, he said.
The Astars were developed in Europe but have become popular with law enforcement in the U.S.
"They're a multi-mission platform, they will do the job of our observation helicopters, but they also give
them additional capabilities," Hester said.
That includes cargo hooks with special netting for carrying large loads of contraband or maintenance
equipment for radio repeater sites that allow signals to carry over the mountains.
