Until recent the narco subs used to smuggle cocaine into the United States were submarines in name only, as they were not designed to dive underwater and resurface. Last week, however, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Ecuadorian authorities seized a 108 foot long (33 meter) fiberglass narco submarine with a conning tower, periscope and air conditioning system which could dive to a an estimated depth of 65 feet. The submarine was found at a jungle shipyard in Ecuador near the Colombian border as it was preparing for its first voyage. It was described as the first fully-operational submarine built for transporting multi-ton quantities of cocaine ever to have been seized by government authorities.
Narco sub could have submerged to 65 ft
Sometime in the 1990s, cocaine smugglers switched from high speed power boats, which were easy to spot on radar, to semi-submersibles, which were almost invisible to radar and difficult to spot from other boats. They have been dubbed narco subs and typically have been around 30-40 feet long, capable of traveling around 6 knots and carrying several tons of cocaine.
rick . . . fascinating stuff. thanks.