Operation Watchtower

According to affidavits from Colonel Edward Cutolo, commander of the 10th Special Forces Group, and PFC William Tyree, it was one of many drug trafficking operations from Central America consisting of the placement and operation of low frequency radio beacons to guide low-flying pilots from Colombia to Panama. It also consisted of making available to the pilots the radio frequencies and schedules of drug interdic­tion aircraft so as to avoid detection. Because of the extremely low altitude these drug-laden aircraft flew, often less than 500′, they could not receive the line-of-sight navigational signals available throughout the world (VOR). Radio transmission from a drug-carrying aircraft on a particular frequency actuated a relay at the radio beacon that started up the gasoline-engine-powered generators and the radio transmitters used for navigation. The operation was led by George H.W. Bush, Bill Casey, and Donald Gregg.  Read More…