N55789 "Miss Ziggy," operated by the Dallas/Fort Worth Wing of the Commemorative Air Force. Photo by Col. Harlan Short and courtesy CAF.
Posted on 10/19/2005 4:23:31 PM PDT by SwinneySwitch
For one week, a Stinson L-5 has roamed the skies south of Falfurrias as part of the Minuteman border patrol, said Grant Lannon, who has volunteered with the Minuteman group for a year.
The plane is one of several privately owned by Minuteman volunteers and spends more than an hour before dawn and after dusk observing the ground with an infrared scope, he said.
It uses 10 gallons of automobile gasoline per hour and costs the Minuteman group about $90 per day. Lannon said members donated or loaned the scopes.
"We’re observing and supporting the people on the ground," he said.
The Minuteman pilots try to use low horsepower planes to fly slowly over the 15 to 20 miles they observe on both sides of U.S. Highway 281, Lannon said.
If they see movement, they call the Border Patrol and alert them to the activity, but Lannon said they do not approach or talk to immigrants.
Stinsons were used in World War II and the Korean War to observe enemy activity, but this plane never operated on the battle lines, he said. The group will use the plane until Thursday, when a different plane will replace it.
Lannon said he’ll bring his AT-6 Texan to Falfurrias next week.
"I feel pretty strongly about securing our borders," he said, "especially in an era of terrorism."
Contact Mari Saugier at 886-3623 or saugierm@caller.com
Lannon, put that T-6 prop in low pitch when you see 'em and they will run back across the border muy pronto!
MM AF Ping!
Please FReepmail me if you want on or off this South Texas/Mexico ping list.
Dust off the OV-10's Bert ! Looks like we have a use for em again if the batfaggies haven't crunched em all.....:o)
We were down wheeling south of El Paso a month or two ago and the people I off road with are all former military and you'd be suprised to see the amount of hi tech night vision that was brought out. I had "borrowed" a set of SOPHIE thermal binoculars that I brought along with my NVG's. The rest had PVS 5 and 7 series Night Vision Goggles and PVS4 and 14 scopes and all grades of commercial grade night vision monoculars were present...... I can remember working in SE Asia and having one old PVS 2 scope per unit much less per man. Now the stuff is everywhere.....good gear.
As to sophie thermal binocs.....ya can't hide from anyone with em unless ya go underwater or underground. At 70K plus a pop they ain't something I can afford to have in my personal gear bag but the ITT190 monocular and a AN/PVS14 are pretty much affordable......
Simple pair of binocs or spotting scope is basics with a video or digital camera a nice to have with a Night Vision Monocular as really nice to have when down there looking for coyotes......
BTTT for the Minutemen Project.
Just think, you wouldn't have to if Bush was doing his job.
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