Colombia, Dominican air forces practice drug flight interdictions

Bogota.- Starting today Colombia’s and Dominican Republic’s Air forces will until Saturday conduct joint military exercises for airspace surveillance in the Caribbean, aimed at halting drug flights along one of the world’s busiest cocaine-trafficking corridors, officials told Efe.

Colombia’s 3rd Air Combat Command conducts the operation called "Caribbean IV" from Barranquilla’s Cortissoz International Airport, jointly with Dominican Republic’s Air Force based at San Isidro Airbase, the South American country said in a statement. "The exercise, held for the fourth consecutive year, aims to strengthen coordinated procedures in order to combat transnational crime."

It said the maneuvers allow combined military training operations on information exchange in real time between the air forces in both countries to intercept illegal flights linked to organized crime.

“The lessons learned from previous maneuvers facilitated obtaining important results, such as administrative detention and / or interception of 158 aircraft, the disabling of another 52 used by drug traffickers and the confiscation of 4,851 kilos of drugs in the Caribbean region, according to Colombian Air Force figures.