Page 32 - ARUBA TODAY

A32 FEATURE
Tuesday 17 OcTOber 2017

APNewsBreak: Border Patrol tests camera-toting balloon

By ELLIOT SPAGAT retired from government in
Associated Press 2013 after stints as deputy
SAN DIEGO (AP) — The U.S. and acting commissioner
Border Patrol is considering of its parent agency, Cus-
a surveillance balloon that toms and Border Protec-
can be quickly moved to tion. He discusses border is-
spot illegal activity, part of sues at conferences and in
an effort to see if more eyes congressional hearings.
in the sky translate to fewer Drone Aviation pays Aguilar
illegal crossings. $24,000 a year and grant-
Agents in Texas recently ed options to buy 50,000
finished a 30-day trial of shares for $2.90 apiece in
the camera-toting, heli- January 2018 and 50,000
um-filled balloon made in January 2019 at the
by Drone Aviation Hold- same price. The stock rose
ing Corp., a small startup 8 cents, or 8.1 percent, to
that named former Border $1.07 Thursday in over-the-
Patrol chief David Aguilar counter trading.
to its board of directors in The company, backed by
January. The 3-year-old, billionaire investor Phillip
money-losing company Frost, posted a loss of $8.5
gave Aguilar options that million on revenues of $1.5
may prove lucrative if it million last year. It employs
gets more orders for its pro- 24 people at its Jackson-
prietary model. ville Florida, headquarters,
The trial comes as agents according to a presenta-
test hand-launched In this undated aerial photo provided by Drone Aviation Corp. shows a tethered balloon, called tion for investors in January.
drones, which are relatively Winch Aerostat Small Platform, or WASP. The investor presentation
inexpensive but hampered Associated Press touted Aguilar’s key rela-
by short battery life and with a mobile response take days to assemble, re- with their heavier gear, can tionships to drive growth.
weight limits. The Border Pa- team in Rio Grande Valley, quire more than twice the peer about 20 miles (32 ki- Companies often recruit
trol has also used six large the busiest corridor for ille- crew and are almost never lometers). The official spoke former officials to their
tethered balloons in Texas gal crossings. moved. on condition of anonymity boards and executive suites
since 2012, acquired from Cuellar, who was briefed The WASP also may per- because the Border Patrol to help pitch their former
the Defense Department. on the trial during a visit last form better in strong winds, hadn’t publicly discussed agencies. Defense con-
President Donald Trump month, said the agency’s which Aguilar said was evi- the balloons. tractors are stacked with
has pledged to add 5,000 top official in the region dent as Hurricane Harvey Judd, president of the Na- former Pentagon officials.
agents, but hiring has been was “very complimentary” hit nearby. Drone Aviation tional Border Patrol Coun- Such arrangements, while
slow. If drones and balloons of the technology. says it can handle gusts up cil, said it would “be a widespread and legal, rile
are deployed more wide- The balloons can be as- to 45 mph (72 kph). great piece of equipment some critics of corporate in-
ly, fewer agents may be sembled and deployed On the flip side, the bal- for us.” The official said a fluence on government. “It
needed. by two or three agents in loons can’t carry as much decision was expected does raise issues for people
The new balloon - called less than an hour and re- equipment. One U.S. offi- within months. about whether there’s kind
Winch Aerostat Small Plat- main aloft while tethered cial familiar with the tech- Aguilar appears ideally suit- of an inside track, a revolv-
form, or WASP - drew the to a moving vehicle. The nology said their cameras ed to make the company’s ing door, between govern-
Border Patrol’s interest large balloons, controlled scanned 4 or 5 miles (8 kilo- case. He was Border Patrol ment and the private sec-
largely to save money. remotely from trailers, can meters). The larger models, chief from 2005 to 2010 and tor,” said Lawrence Noble,
The company says one general counsel for The
costs $800,000 plus about Campaign Legal Center, a
$350,000 a year to operate, watchdog group in Wash-
depending on how often ington.
it’s moved. By contrast, op- Aguilar, who joined the
erating the current fleet of Border Patrol in 1978 and
six large balloons costs $33 climbed the ranks, is a prin-
million a year, according to cipal at Global Security
U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, a and Innovative Strategies,
Texas Democrat. a Washington consulting
The Border Patrol, in re- firm that includes a former
sponse to questions from Secret Service director and
The Associated Press, said a former Homeland Secu-
Thursday it was evaluat- rity Department chief of
ing results of the trial. The staff. He said Drone Avia-
agency hadn’t previously tion approached him, and
disclosed the trial, but the he made introductions to
AP learned details from the Border Patrol after be-
Aguilar, Cuellar and head coming convinced the air-
of the agents’ union Bran- craft would help.
don Judd. Aguilar said it’s healthy for
Agents began experiment- the military and law en-
ing with the WASP Aug. 21 In this Nov. 28, 2006, file photo, David V. Aguilar, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National forcement agencies to rely
at the Border Patrol’s Rio Border Patrol Chief, speaks at the Texas Homeland Security conference in San Antonio. on former officials in the pri-
Grande City station and Associated Press vate sector. q