The real-life British Q-branch, which is a defence company that deploys radar-equipped blimps to scan border intrusions, has played a major role in the war against drugs waged by America.
QinetiQ is the FTSE 250 defense company that manages the airship like craft, which is deployed in intervals along the 2,000-mile stretch between Arizona to Florida.
The blimps are able to reach altitudes up to 15,000 feet and have a 200-mile viewing range, allowing them to spot low-flying planes and speedboats that drug runners prefer.
QinetiQwas recently awarded a $170m Tethered Aerostat radar System (TARS), contract by the US Department of Homeland Security. The company will be responsible for a network of eight blimps, ground stations and over 200 employees.
TARS was deployed for the first time in 1980s when illegal flights were estimated to be 8,500 per year. Drugs and contraband would typically be carried on planes that landed on dirt runways.
The Mexican authorities seized more than 500 aircraft from Joaquin “El Chappo” Guzman. Most of these were innocuous-looking Cessnas, which were popular because they operated from a 900 foot airstrip, and had double doors to allow for fast unloading.
Aerostats (also known as TARS balloons) helped US officers intercept planes and boats illegally entering US territory. They also predicted where gangs could cross the border if planes landed on temporary runways inside Mexico.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 100 times stronger than morphine. It has sparked a new US drug crisis with over 70,000 reported overdose deaths in 2022.
Last year, the Drug Enforcement Administration seized 79.5 million fentanyl tablets and five tons of powder.
With the advent of inexpensive but durable drones, the task that QinetiQ and Customs and Border Protection’s air and maritime arm, which operates aerostats, face has become more challenging.
Jonathan Riksen is the executive vice president of QinetiQ. He said, “A drone, by definition, is much smaller than a plane.” This is problematic, because it’s not only harder to detect but can also look like a large bird (like a goose) in its radar return.
Mr Riksen explained that high-altitude radars were more effective at identifying targets, as they flatten the background. Ground-based scanners, however, can be distorted when an object is seen against a mountainside, forest, or other natural backdrop.
He said that the TARS radars are so sensitive, they can detect a drone’s spinning blades.
The accuracy of drones is vital, especially in light of the recent conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East that have shown the potential for them to be used as frontline weapons.
Last month, Poland signed a $1bn ($790m) agreement with the US to purchase four aerostats. These will be used by the country’s eastern border to detect missiles, aircrafts, drones, and seaborne incursions. Mr Riksen added that the TARS is also responsible for detecting potential hostile drone threats.
QinetiQ’s diesel-powered blimps can remain aloft up to a week without refuelling. This makes them perfect for persistent surveillance. Extreme weather conditions can, however, force them to land.
Each balloon is attached to a nylon fiber cable and raised or lowered by a powered winch. TARS is operated from six locations along the US-Mexico Border, including one site that monitors the Florida Straits and another in Puerto Rico which monitors the north Caribbean region.
QinetiQ, Britain’s biggest science and technology organization and the largest in Britain at the time, was formed in 2001 from the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency. This organisation itself was formed by a number government agencies that had their roots in the Cold War.
The name of the company has been interpreted as a reference to Q Branch in James Bond films, the fictional MI6 division tasked with creating spy gadgets and weaponry.
In a trading update released last month, the company stated that it had identified potential to increase the value of the TARS five-year contract by 50%.
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