FACT SHEET:  Forward Operating Locations

 

The U.S. military has two Forward Operating Locations (FOLs) in Latin America and the Caribbean.  The FOLs are strategic, cost-effective locations in Comalapa, El Salvador and Aruba/Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, which allow U.S. and partner nation aircraft the use of existing airfields to support the region’s multinational counter-drug effort.  The FOLs are the result of cooperative, long-term agreements between the U.S. and the host nations.

Overview

FOL map:

Related links of interest:   Office of Nat’l Drug Control Policy links »    President’s Nat’l Drug Control Strategy »    Cocaine sources »    Heroin sources »    Interdiction operations   State Department »    2008 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR)

Typical U.S. aircraft operating from FOLs:   »    Navy P-3 Orions »    Navy E-2 Airborne Early Warning »    U.S. Air Force E-3 AWACS »    CPB P-3’s »    USCG C-130’s

 

 

The FOLs are not bases.  They are tenant activities on existing airfields whose sole purpose is to support counter-drug missions (see more).

 

U.S. Southern Command oversees the operations from the FOLs.  The Key West, Fla.-based Joint Interagency Task Force-South coordinates U.S. aircraft usage and operations.

 

From these locations, U.S. detection and monitoring aircraft fly missions to detect, monitor and track aircraft or vessels engaged in illicit drug trafficking. The unarmed aircraft offer unique surveillance capabilities that support and compliment the counter-drug efforts of partner nation law enforcement agencies. (Note: Host nation officials are responsible for decisions to interdict suspected traffickers within their borders/airspace, and U.S. law enforcement agencies lead interdiction efforts in international waters.)

 

Small numbers of military, Drug Enforcement Agency, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S Customs personnel operate from the FOLs to support the U.S. aircraft and to coordinate communications and intelligence.  The vast majority of the personnel and aircraft rotate in and out of the FOLs during rotation cycles that can last from weeks to months. Typically, the number of U.S. personnel operating from each FOL ranges from 200-400 at a given time.  Only 10-15 U.S. personnel are permanently stationed at each FOL to act as liaisons with local authorities.

 

Establishment of the FOLs

 

 

With the closure of Howard Air Force Base in Panama in 1997, the establishment of FOLs within what officials call “source zones” (Andean Ridge) and “transit zones” (Caribbean, Eastern Pacific and Central America), was critical to the U.S. ability to implement the National Drug Control Strategy.  The agreed upon locations allow U.S. and allied nation interdiction aircraft to be forward deployed closer to cocaine departure points in the source zone.  The operations out of the FOLs now yield more counter-drug surveillance “coverage” -- at less cost -- than previous efforts out of Howard Air Force Base.

 

Agreements with the host nations specify which missions may be flown from the FOLs and also authorize Host Nation Riders to fly aboard U.S. aircraft to facilitate in-flight coordination with host nation authorities during operational missions. Some FOLs required extensive U.S.-funded modifications and upgrades to ensure that airfield/support facilities and force protection measures meet U.S. standards for safe operation by deployed aircraft and personnel (airfields must be night and all weather capable, have an air traffic control facility, and an 8,000-foot runway with the capability to support small, medium and heavy aircraft).

 

Each FOL at a glance:

 

 

Caribbean FOL (Aruba-Curacao, The Netherlands Antilles)

The FOL is at two locations: Curaçao`s Hato International Airport and Aruba`s Reina Beatrix International Airport.  The formal 10-year access agreement with the Kingdom of the Netherlands was signed in March 2000 and the Netherlands` parliament ratified the agreement in October 2001.  Both FOL locations required minor construction improvements to include aircraft parking ramps, maintenance, and operations buildings. Counter-drug flights were made from these locations even as improvements were being made.  To date, the Aruba FOL has seen limited improvement and use while the Curacao FOL has received all required improvements to include ramp space for two large, two medium, and six small aircraft, a fresh water rise facility, a maintenance hangar, and an operations building.

 

Aruba-Curacao provides effective, rapid response operations in the northern source zone, which includes the Guajira Peninsula of Colombia and the Venezuelan border region, as well as a large part of the transit zone.  The FOLs two locations provide U.S., Dutch,  United Kingdom, Canadian and French aircraft quick access to Caribbean drug smuggling corridors, where U.S., U.K., French, and Dutch surface vessels are positioned to help interdict air and maritime drug trafficking targets.  The U.S. Air Force handles day-to-day operations at the FOL, and provides the military aircraft and personnel.

  

Central American FOL (Comalapa, El Salvador)

The FOL at Comalapa is located at the Comalapa International Airport. In March 2000, the U.S. reached agreement with the government of El Salvador to operate out of Comalapa International Airport for 10 years.  

 

This FOL significantly extends the reach of detection and monitoring aircraft into the Eastern Pacific drug smuggling corridors, through which more than half of the drugs heading for the U.S. transit -- often in multi-ton shipments.  

 

The U.S. Navy handles day-to-day operations at the FOL, and provides the military aircraft and personnel.

South American FOL (Manta, Ecuador) closure:

 

 

More Coverage   Loss of Ecuador Base Leaves Gap in Counternarcotics Surveillance Source: America.gov, 11/9/2009

The FOL at Manta closed Sept. 18, ending a 10-year  lease agreement of the base between the United States and Ecuador.  The FOL was located within the Ecuadorian Eloy Alfaro Air Force Base.  The partnership forged between the U.S. and Ecuador will continue even after the lease expires.

 

Manta was a well-defined part of a multinational partnership to stop illegal narcotic trafficking over the eastern Pacific Ocean. Missions flown by the 487th EOS included aerial detection, monitoring, tracking and control of narcotic activities. The State Department’s deputy assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, Christopher McMullen, said that the program was a major success, undertaking more than 5,500 anti-drug missions and seizing 1,700 metric tons of cocaine with a street value of more than $35 billion.

In 1999 the U.S. and Ecuador signed a bilateral agreement that permited the U.S. to use a portion of the base to conduct counter-narcotics flights.   The U.S. government invested over $70 million to improve the Eloy Alfaro Airport in Manta.  In addition to improvements to the runway (now considered a first-class runway which can support a wide range of flights), the U.S. invested in modern lighting, a full service crash, fire and rescue facility, and improvements to the grounds of the airport.