The air forces of Colombia and Honduras carried out a joint operation which intercepted an airplane carrying cocaine, under a cooperation agreement which came into force in July.
The Colombian Air Force detected a flight in the Caribbean region, going towards Central America, which had not been registered or authorized. They followed the plane into Honduran territory, and alerted that country’s air force, in accordance with the protocols established in the July agreement.
The Honduran authorities intercepted the plane on landing, and found that there was some 470 kilos of cocaine on board.
The pact allows planes from each country to fly into each other’s airspace in pursuit of illegal flights.
Officials said that the agreement was an attempt to close Honduran airspace to drug flights. Honduras is a popular stopping point for traffickers transporting cocaine from South America to Mexico or the United States.