Do illegal drugs often get smuggled on commercial airlines?

It's hard to say how common it is because drug smugglers are constantly changing their routes, says Garrison Courtney, a spokesperson for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency in Washington D.C. "But it usually would go in the luggage or cargo," he says. Using the Internet, drug smugglers have quick access to new information about law enforcement methods, so they are often up to speed on roadblocks hindering their points of entry to the United States, he says.

Drugs en route to the United States usually pass through several countries, whether by air, land or sea. Law enforcement and intelligence community sources estimate 65% of the cocaine shipped to the United States moves through a Central America-Mexico route, primarily by vessels operating in the eastern Pacific. Common destinations are Los Angeles, Miami, Orlando, Houston and Phoenix, Courtney says. "It depends on what cartel they work with," says Courtney.

On commercial airlines entering the United States, all passengers pass by the Border Control and Customs Services, which have dogs to sniff out illicit drugs. But smuggling is not a significant danger to passengers personally or physically, Courtney says. "We haven't seen any incidents where it was [dangerous]," he says.

The most recent big case of drug smuggling on flights took place in Miami, when U.S. federal agents busted a ring of workers--most of them contractors or baggage handlers for the biggest airline serving the region, American Airlines. Fifty-eight were arrested in the 1999 sting operation. The feds used fake drug bundles to lure them into the sting, called "Operation Ramp Rats." The resulting publicity lead to significant changes in airport screening of employees (and the availability of shrink wrap for luggage.) Obviously, things have only tightened further since Sept. 11, but the risks are still real.