US Northern Command Intensifies Surveillance Along US–Mexico Border

U.S. Northern Command troops use an AN/TPQ-53 Quick Reaction Capability Radar system to detect threats from drones along the border. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Chase Murray, photo courtesy of U.S. Northern Command

U.S. Northern Command soldiers deployed near Rio Grande City, Texas, are using radar systems to monitor activity along the southern border, amid a “massive increase in drone use for reconnaissance” by illegal immigrants and drug smugglers, according to a Northern Command statement May 29. 

Soldiers operate two radar systems, the AN/TPQ-53 rapid reaction radar that tracks rockets and mortars, and the AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel, which tracks aircraft and drones. Originally used on the battlefield, the systems have been adapted for domestic defense.