Guatemala News Outlet Spots Clandestine Airstrip Near Military Base

[Judi Lynn]

Written by Charles Orta Thursday, 18 May 2017



Petén clandestine airstrip near Perenco


A news organization in Guatemala discovered a clandestine drug trafficking airstrip located in the vicinity of a military post and property owned by a transnational company, raising questions about ties between organized crime and elites in the area and the difficulty of preventing the illegal use of private property for criminal activities. 

While conducting a flyover of Laguna del Tigre National Park, part of Guatemala's Maya Biosphere Reserve in the northern province of Petén, Plaza Pública stumbled upon what appeared to be a one-kilometer clandestine airstrip hidden in plain sight. 

According to the news outlet, the track of land where the airstrip is located is notable for its proximity to property owned by a foreign company as well as a military outpost. It is a mere 25 meters from the regularly-patrolled Xan oil field, operated by the British-French oil and gas company Perenco, and about six kilometers from the military facility.



(Photograph courtesy of Plaza Pública)

After being shown pictures of the dirt runway, Aldo Chapas, the country's chief anti-narcotics prosecutor, told Plaza Pública that it had telling signs of a clandestine airstrip. But he said an investigation would have to be launched to confirm the details and determine whether the runway was authorized.

More:
http://www.insightcrime.org/news-briefs/guatemala-news-outlet-spots-clandestine-airstrip-near-military-base

[mn9driver]

1. Photo doesn't actually show a strip.

The photo shows what might be a really rough strip, but no airplane with any real cargo capacity could use something that gnarly.

What it actually looks like is a pipeline cut. Note that there is no beginning or end of it in the picture. Doesn't mean it's not a strip, but without a picture of at least one end of it, it could be anything.