Aerostats from Afghanistan pull duty on Mexican border
- By Defense Systems Staff
- Aug 17, 2012
Customs and Border Protection has begun testing Defense Department aerostats that were used in Afghanistan for surveillance along the Texas-Mexico border, reports GCN, a sister publication of Defense Systems.
CBP earlier this year conducted another test of aerostats along the border, part of a larger effort to test various technologies for border surveillance, the agency said.
The tests in Arizona used technology from Raven Aerostar, provider of the aerostats; L-3 Communications, provider of a sensor (L-3 Wescam) attached to the aerostat, similar to a camera; and Logos Technologies, provider of a second sensor (Kestrel) that operates in conjunction with the L-3 Wescam. The Kestrel sensor is capable of immediately scanning a wide area, increasing the likelihood of detecting small targets.