El Paso, TX Agency Halts Flights Pending Safety Review

When the US Customs and Border Patrol merged in 2005, it created the largest law enforcement air fleet in the world with 250 aircraft. The agency is planning to expand the fleet next year to 267. But, with two recent fatal aircraft accidents and the airspace over the border becoming more congested and active, people are getting worried the number of accidents will also increase.

As ANN reported, CBP pilot Clint Thrasher, 32, apparently lost control of his Cessna 182 and crashed near San Miguel, TX April 25 while on routine patrol for undocumented immigrants.

Almost one month later, CBP pilot Robert F. Smith perished when his American Eurocopter AS350 went down in a residential area in El Paso, TX, near the US/Mexico border May 22. Steven Takacs, a CBP observer also onboard the helo, survived.

"The frontier with Mexico is one of the most dynamic, fast-growing regions in North America," said state Senator Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso. "Increased militarization -- more troops, helicopters and weapons -- will inevitably lead to casualties."

CBP officials say the agency has "one of the best safety records in the aviation industry" while acknowledging "the inherent risks in aviation and law enforcement are ever present."

The director of CBP air operations in El Paso, Michael Wimberly, announced he has halted all El Paso CBP flights pending an internal review of "all our operations, our procedures, our safety practices, just to see if we can find anything that needs to be improved in order to avoid accidents in the future."

There are those who believe the only result of the Bush administration's efforts to shore up the nation's border security with more agents, technology, and equipment will be more accidents, according to the Houston Chronicle.

"It's going to be commonplace for a helicopter to crash, or a vehicle accident to happen, or some sort of confrontation with neighborhood residents," said border expert Tony Payan, professor of political science at the University of Texas-El Paso. "It's going to be a nightmare."

This pair of accidents are the agency's first, Wimberly said.

"There has not been a case of a CBP Air and Marine aircraft crash that resulted in injury to people on the ground," said the CBP.

"Communities in Texas and elsewhere can be assured that there is no increased risk to them from Air and Marine conducting homeland security missions."

El Paso store owner and founder of the downtown merchant's association Tanny Berg said border residents "shouldn't be any more concerned about helicopters than people in Houston when helicopters are monitoring traffic over the freeways during rush hours."

The CBP contends it conducts very rigorous pilot training and scheduled maintenance on the 25 aircraft that are assigned to El Paso.

"I don't think the public should have any concerns for future occurrences of this type," said Wimberly.

FMI: www.cbp.gov