CBP is flying surveillance aircraft over Phoenix ICE operations

Customs and Border Protection has
been flying surveillance aircraft over the Phoenix area in support of
Homeland Security Investigations, a division of Immigration Customs
Enforcement. 

But little is known about what type
of aircraft is monitoring operations on the ground or what role it is
playing, and the agency has said it won’t elaborate. 

On Tuesday morning, federal officials
with HSI descended upon a Peoria neighborhood, where witnesses told the
Arizona Mirror they had witnessed multiple agents use flash bangs and
use a battering ram to enter a house. Yasmeen Pitts O’Keefe, a
spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said the case
involved narcotics and human smuggling. She said that one person was
arrested on federal charges and another was turned over to immigration
officials. 

While agents were on the ground, an aircraft that gave the callsign “TROY73” to air traffic controllers circled overhead
at 9500 feet. The aircraft later landed at the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway
airport, where “ICE Air” has its operational headquarters and where
another aircraft operated by CBP landed later in the day. 

That other aircraft was a Department of Homeland Security Blackhawk helicopter that went by the callsign “TROY215.” 

It is unclear what type of aircraft
“TROY73” was, as CBP refused to give any information. The data published
by ADSB Exchange that the Mirror reviewed only shows snippets of the
aircraft’s activity, which includes landings and take-offs at Arizona
Air Force bases. 

The “TROY” callsign has been used by other CBP aircraft across the country.

“Air and Marine Operations (AMO)
Tucson Air Branch routinely provides aerial support to federal law
enforcement partners conducting operations throughout Arizona,” CBP said
in a statement to the Mirror. “Due to law enforcement sensitivities, we
cannot comment on the specific support given to partner agencies.”

On Wednesday, the Mirror also observed another aircraft
flying at a much higher altitude than the one spotted in Peoria that
had also previously landed at both Luke Air Force Base and Davis-Monthan
Air Force Base. CBP did not respond to follow-up questions asking for
clarification on what aircraft were used and if protesters, who were
present in Peoria, had been surveilled by the aircraft. 

AMO’s Aircraft 

AMO’s aircraft have been flying in other areas of the country during ICE operations, most notably Los Angeles. 

404 Media first reported
that AMO has been flying MQ-9 Reaper drones to support ICE during the
protests that have been taking place. The AMO’s Predator Operations
Center is based out of Davis-Monthan in Tucson. 

However, the aircraft that flew over Peoria could have been any number of aircraft that are part of AMO’s fleet. 

AMO employs smaller single-engine
aircraft, such as a Cessna 260H/T206H that can fly between 15,700 and
27,000 feet and is used to conduct “surveillance, tracking and
reconnaissance,” according to AMO’s own factsheet on the aircraft.   

“AMO’s fleet of Stationairs are
effective platforms for law enforcement operations in both large
metropolitan and remote rural areas,” AMO’s factsheet says. “These
aircraft have longer range and endurance than helicopters and an
appearance that blends effectively with the civil aviation fleet.” 

AMO also employs aircraft similar to
ones used by local law enforcement, such as Beechcraft King Airs, which
the Arizona Department of Public Safety uses, and a Pilatus PC-12, which
the Phoenix Police Department employs. 

The Beechcraft is used for “aerial
patrols, prisoner transports and surveillance” and is outfitted with a
high-end spectral imaging camera. The company that makes the camera, L3
Wescam, shows off the Yuma County Courthouse in a promotional video of the camera’s capabilities. 

The PC-12, which is similar to an aircraft used by the military,
uses “state-of-the-art sensor equipment for detecting, tracking, and
surveillance operations that require standoff range from surveillance
target to avoid counter detection” and the aircraft has “on-board video
recorders” to “document suspect activities for evidentiary use,” according to the factsheet. 

Much like the PC-12 used by the Phoenix Police Department, the AMO PC-12 has a laser designator, allowing the pilots to maintain a lock on with their camera and sensors. 

AMO also has a fleet of Super King
Air 350ER aircraft, that much like the PC-12, are equipped with a host
of high-tech surveillance tech. 

Other aircraft in AMO’s fleet likely
would not have been used over Peoria or the rest of Phoenix as they are
utilized for tracking weather or threats at special events.

This is not the first time high powered surveillance aircraft have been flown over Phoenix residents. 

The Mirror exclusively reported
that the Arizona National Guard flew a surveillance plane in support of
the Phoenix Police Department in 2020 to monitor Black Lives Matter
protests and a report by the U.S. Air Force Inspector General later concluded that doing so deterred protesters.