Grassley Says FAA Loopholes Aid Drug Runners

According to GlobalAir, Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley is calling on the FAA to tighten up aircraft registration to prevent drug cartels from using N-registered planes to move drugs. Grassley, who's co-chair of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, issued a report on Monday alleging the cartels are using loopholes to get U.S. registration on drug-running aircraft. “Air transportation is a favored method for the cartels and a burgeoning industry of illicit aircraft brokers has grown up around it," the report said. "These brokers exploit vulnerabilities and loopholes in the Federal Aviation Administration’s aircraft registry process to place U.S.-registered planes in the hands of transnational criminal organizations (TCOs).”

Ironically, N-registered aircraft are in hot demand by the drug trade because they are considered well vetted and therefore don't get as much scrutiny by foreign government agencies. Grassley said the General Accountability Office made 15 recommendations to tighten up registration in 2020 but so far only three have been acted upon. He said foreign shell companies and non-citizen trusts are the likely owners of about 5,000 aircraft on the registry and that the addresses of record for at least 25,000 aircraft don't exist.