May 25, 1997 Warning to Pilots Flying to Western Mexico and Baja California |
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Before you fly into Western Mexico or Baja California, read and heed this warning from the Aviation Crime Prevention Institute (ACPI) about the sharp increase in aircraft thefts in the region.
May 25, 1997
According to the Aviation
Crime Prevention Institute (ACPI), there has been a sharp upturn
in aircraft thefts and associated violence in western Mexico and
Baja California. In March, ACPI reported that three
Mexican-registered aircraft were stolen in one week alone. One
Cessna 402 pilot was approached by a gunman, shot dead and thrown
off the aircraft. A Cessna 206 pilot was also forced out of his
aircraft by gunmen.
On February 16, 1997, race car driver Bobby Unser's 1976
Cessna TU206, tail number N500BU, was stolen in San Carlos, Baja
California, Mexico. The aircraft has a Robertson STOL kit and
oversized tires and wheel fairings. It was painted red, white and
blue with "Bobby Unser" logos on both sides.
 ACPI says that the worst areas are Baja, Sonora, Oaxaca,
Guerrero and Sinaloa, and that flying into remote areas can be
extremely dangerous, especially for pilots of Cessna 206, 207 and
210 models. Landing at unattended or unsecured airports and
landing strips in these areas is asking for trouble. Pilots are
advised to confine their operations to populated areas with
attended airports.
Since late in 1996, drug traffickers have been stealing
aircraft from these areas of Mexico, sometimes using deadly force
to do so. According to informed sources in law enforcement and
professionals working in the area, short field capable (STOL)
aircraft are preferred by the traffickers for hauling harvested
marijuana from staging areas in the Sierra Madre Mountains to
distribution points in other parts of Mexico.
Aircraft equipped with anti-theft devices should be warned
that the last aircraft stolen in Mexico had a prop lock and
throttle lock installed. The owner reported that the thieves
removed this devices and was gone within 15 minutes.
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