December 17, 2006
American Border Patrol
| Belgian C-130 (CH-05) has close encounter with ABP's Border Hawk M (N3422L) while flying two miles north of the border in Southeastern Arizona on Friday, Dec. 15. The Cessna was being piloted by Glenn Spencer of ABP. "The C-130 was flying at no more than 1,000 feet AGL while we were flying just above 500 feet AGL," Spencer said. "The first encounter was very close, no more than 700 feet separation, and the pilot must have seen me" Spencer said that the C-130 was no doubt talking with Libby Approach Control and that Libby no doubt could see ABP's 1227 squawk. "They can probably explain the first close encounter, but I wonder why they came back for another close pass," Spencer said. "I don't know what a Belgian military aircraft is doing patrolling our borders, but nothing makes sense down here," Spencer added. |
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| Below: Red dot shows location of encounter between American Border Patrol's Cessna TU-206 and the Belgian C-130. There were two encounters, both times the C-130 passed within 1000 feet of the Cessna. "There is no doubt in my mind that the pilot of the C-130 saw our aircraft," said Glenn Spencer, pilot of the Cessna. "Why he made a second pass knowing we were there is a puzzlement," Spencer added. |
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| Below: ABP was flying a surveillance mission just above 500' and was tracking two Border Patrol Agents as they were searching for a group of illegal aliens in the San Pedro River area. ABP followed standard procedures and contacted Customs and Border Protection prior to the flight. ABP was squaking "1227" on its transponder according to the assignment given by the FAA office at Prescott Arizona. |
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