The Region : U.S. Curbs Private Planes From Mexico

The U.S. Customs Service will no longer allow private planes entering the United States from Mexico to land at Lindbergh Field in San Diego without an earlier stop at a U.S. Customs Service checkpoint. The agreement with Customs was announced by Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Coronado) as an attempt “to control drug smuggling,” a spokesman for the congressman said. All private planes from Mexico will be forced to land first at two small airports on the U.S. side of the border, where they will be inspected before being allowed to continue on to Lindbergh Field, spokesman Frank Collins said. “Before, they would land on an isolated strip somewhere in the desert, unload their drugs and go on to Lindbergh to be checked by Customs,” he said. “This will just take another opportunity away from the drug smugglers.” Planes that try to bypass the checkpoints will be detected by border radar, officials said. About two planes a day come in from Mexico to land at Lindbergh Field. In 1985, 732 flights came to the field from Mexico carrying 3,473 passengers and crew, according to the manager of Lindbergh Field.