Homeland Security wants more troops at the US-Mexico border to help operate blimps, congressman says
by Rose L. Thayer
• Stars and Stripes • November 18, 2021
The Department of Homeland Security is asking the Pentagon to send an additional 1,500 troops to the U.S. border with Mexico next year, in part to operate observation blimps previously used by forces in Afghanistan, said Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas.
The request is making its way through the Defense Department approval process and could authorize up to 4,500 service members deploy to the southwest border during fiscal 2022, which began Oct. 1. It would expand the border mission that began nearly four years ago and includes a mix of active-duty and National Guard troops providing support to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, known as CBP.
The Pentagon declined to comment on the request because it has not yet been approved.
The request calls for more troops to operate large blimps, also known as aerostats, said Cuellar, whose district includes a stretch of south Texas and the border town of Laredo. The surveillance equipment hovers at up 10,000 feet,
accumulating data of the surrounding area.
https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2021-11-18/troops-blimps-mexico-border-homeland-security-pentagon-3668370.html
