A plane taking part in Frontex activities in the Central Mediterranean played a key role in the arrest of two suspected people smugglers who had earlier dropped off 33 migrants near Syracuse, Sicily.
The Italian authorities had asked Frontex to dispatch the plane, which streams real-time video to the agency’s headquarters, to help find the smugglers on sailboat that was heading away from Sicily. The plane spotted the suspected sailboat heading away from the island. The migrants later confirmed that the vessel was the one involved in the smuggling operation and Italian authorities intercepted it the same day.
Expanding the agency’s ability to track vessels and monitor the sea in real time, the plane provides streaming video and other data directly to Frontex as part of a unique multipurpose aerial surveillance (MAS) operation launched last month. The real-time video is transmitted to the Frontex Situation Centre (FSC) at the agency’s headquarters in Warsaw, where it is monitored by Frontex staff, along with representatives from the Italian law enforcement authorities and Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre.
The information provided by the plane is used to assist in tracking suspected criminal activity in the Central Mediterranean, but may also be used to provide assistance in search-and-rescue missions in the area. In case of such an emergency, the video and other data would be shared with relevant national authorities, which coordinate all search-and-rescue efforts.
In addition, the plane may also assist the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) in tracking down illegal fishing as part of the cooperation on multi-purpose operations.
VESSEL TRACKING CAPABILITIES
In a separate incident last month highlighting the growing capabilities of tracking down smaller vessels as part of Frontex operations, 73 migrants in two rubber boats were rescued after they were spotted by a Portuguese aircraft patrolling the Western Mediterranean as part of Frontex Joint Operation Indalo. One of the boats was also detected in satellite images taken as part of Frontex’s Eurosur Fusion Services.
The migrants, including women and children, were rescued by the Spanish authorities and were brought to safety in the Spanish port of Motril.
The rescue highlights the growing capabilities of the Vessel Detection Service (VDS), one of Eurosur Fusion Services that uses satellite images to track suspicious vessels or those in distress. VDS have been recently upgraded to provide enhanced capacity to detect smaller vessels at sea, such as the two rescued rubber boats.
Eurosur Fusion Services support Member States’ ability to observe activities at and beyond the EU external border and to react more quickly. They are delivered in cooperation with other EU Agencies - European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA), European Union Satellite Centre (SatCen), European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA), as well as commercial partners. Several of the activities are supported by the Copernicus Programme, an EU initiative for earth observation.