Most drug cartel boats, particularly the high-speed vessels known as "go-fast boats" (including pangas, low-profile vessels, and similar designs used for smuggling cocaine and other narcotics across the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean), are equipped with multiple high-powered outboard motors (minimum of two...on up to five).
These are typically gasoline-fueled engines from brands like Yamaha or Mercury, ranging from 200 to 350 horsepower each, often configured in multiples of 2–5 per boat to achieve speeds exceeding 50 knots (about 60 mph) while carrying heavy loads of up to several tons of drugs and fuel.
The outboards are mounted on the rear for easy maintenance, quick swaps, and high maneuverability.
The Low-Profile Vessels (LPVs): 3 to 4 outboards on slender fiberglass hulls painted to blend with ocean waves, designed for radar evasion (e.g., a 2025 seizure off Central America featured four outboards on a 54-foot craft).
The Panga-Style Boats: Often 1–4 outboards added to fishing hulls for speed boosts (e.g., Venezuelan-linked skiffs with powerful outboards for short Caribbean hops).
Why Outboards?: They provide superior power-to-weight ratios for rapid acceleration, are commercially available (sourced via black-market channels from Japan and the U.S.), and can be jettisoned if needed to lighten the load during chases. Total horsepower often exceeds 1,000 HP per boat.
For context, while some advanced cartel vessels (like semi-submersible "narco-subs") use internal diesel inboards for longer, stealthier runs, these represent a minority of operations—outboards dominate the faster, more disposable "go-fast" fleet that handles the bulk of short- to medium-haul smuggling. Recent U.S. military strikes in 2025 targeted Venezuelan go-fasts with multiple outboards, underscoring their prevalence.
What does a high-powered outboard motors like the Yamaha F300 (300 HP) or Mercury Verado 350 (350 HP), commonly used on drug cartel go-fast boats, cost? Well....$25,000 to $35,000 USD per engine.
So if you figure the boat....the comm gear....the GPS gear, and three engines...you have in the range of $150,000 spent. Five engines? Up into the $220k or more.
What you pay the 'crew'? A run is considered from Venezuela to the Caribbean Island region....where things are parted-up....some going on north to the US...some going to Europe. The master-of-the-boat usually gets $5k to $10k, per trip. The crew makes $500 to $1000, per trip. So up until this US 'tough-approach'....a junior player in this line of work...probably made eight to ten trips a month (figure $4k minimum), and the master made $40,000 minimum, per month.
If you asked me on current 'wages'? It's probably tripled in nature because of the Navy theat.
I asked Grok on fuel required...for this 200-to-300 nautical mile run....with five engines....Total Fuel: more or less....2,250 gallons (50 gph × 45 hours). This aligns with cartel vessels carrying 1,500–4,000 gallons in auxiliary tanks/drums for 300–500 nm ranges.
So if the Navy targets the vessel....that 2,000-plus gallons has a serious burn ratio.
No comments:
Post a Comment