A Black Hawk helicopter is currently patrolling the frontier in Alberta as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police increase border patrols in a bid to improve surveillance and combat the country’s growing pressure to prevent illegal border crossings and drug smuggling. According to the RCMP, flights along the U.S.-Canada borders first commenced on Tuesday. Similar airlines in Manitoba have already taken off. 0: 32
RCMP Black Hawk aircraft start patrolling Manitoba-U. border” The Black Hawk has a very quick deployment functionality along the Alberta border,” said Asst. The RCMP Northwest Region director Lisa Moreland. ” The Black Hawk is unquestionably an extra and extremely significant weather property that has been brought in to help preserve our borders with the United States secure,” says one source.
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A RCMP Black Hawk helicopter over the Coutts Border Crossing in southwestern Alberta on Tuesday, January 28, 2025.
Supplied by RCMP
The helicopter will search for and identify all illegal action along the border region along the Prairie borders. This includes searches for both the human smugglers who facilitate those journeys and those who illegally cross into Canada improperly between border crossings, according to the RCMP. The Black Hawk will also be used, according to RCMP, to halt and smuggle illegal medications into and out of Canada. Authorities will be stationed on the aircraft to assist in any situation where illegal activity may occur close to the border. The aircraft can also be used to alert Integrated Border Enforcement Team officials who guard the Alberta border while stationary in stationary vehicles.
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A RCMP Black Hawk helicopter near the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Alberta on Tuesday, January 28, 2025.
Supplied by RCMP
The RCMP’s chief director and producer standard of serious and organized crime and border dignity stated in an interview with Global News earlier this month that the power has been evaluating the department’s border skills since 2023, which is what made it possible for them to move quickly on leasing the Black Hawks. The RCMP now has nine helicopters in operation, six of which were used to patrol the border, according to Mattieu Bertrand, but the Black Hawks will enhance their speed. 13: 13
The West Block Exclusive: First look at the RCMP Black HawksPolice added the Black Hawks allow those on board to fast-rope down without the plane needing to territory, giving them the ability to collect and fasten to remove people as well. The common energy consumed by the Black Hawks is 590 miles, but the selection can be extended to more than 2000 km if additional tanks are added. 0: 36
The West Block Exclusive: Flying footage of the RCMP’s Black HawkThe helicopters are part of Canada’s plan to beef up patrols of the U. S. Canada border. The government is also putting in place a number of other security measures, including using drones and surveillance towers, and purchasing new technologies like x-rays, mobile x-rays, and handheld chemical analyzers. A senior government official previously claimed that Trudeau was prepared to increase border security by purchasing new helicopters for patrol. The RCMP has been looking for helicopter capabilities for the border for years, according to a national security source at the time. In response to growing pressure from Trump, the federal government announced in December 2024 that it would propose a joint strike force and an “around the clock” aerial surveillance unit for ports of entry as part of its plan to address issues at the U.S.-Canada border. The planned North American joint strike force was one of several announcements that came from the government’s fall economic statement, which saw$ 1.3 billion announced for added border security measures. No new spending can be passed, but measures that can be carried out without legislation can still proceed now that Parliament has been prorogued until March 24. According to Alberta RCMP, residents who reside close to the U.S. border might regularly hear and see the helicopter. There is no reason to worry about public safety because this will be routine police operations, according to the RCMP. —with files from Sean Previl and Uday Rana, Global News1: 57
Canada to use Black Hawk helicopters, drones to beef up border security&, copy 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
