Customs Service: Aviation Program Missions, Resources, and Performance
Measures (Letter Report, 09/09/1998, GAO/GGD-98-186).

The Customs Service is among the more than 50 federal agencies
attempting to control the use of illegal drugs in the United States.
Because Customs' mission is to ensure that persons and goods entering
the country comply with trade laws, Customs' drug-control role centers
on preventing, detecting, and seizing drugs being smuggled across the
borders. In addition to inspectors at more than 300 ports of entry
around the country, Customs operates an aviation program to detect,
track, and help apprehend nonscheduled aircraft, boats, and vehicles
trying to smuggle drugs into the United States. The program also assists
the United States' foreign counterdrug operations and provides law
enforcement support to Customs units as well as other federal, state,
and local agencies. This report describes (1) the program's missions and
how they have changed since fiscal year 1992, (2) the annual level of
resources and activities since fiscal year 1992, and (3) the adequacy of
the performance measures that Customs uses to judge the results of its
aviation program.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  GGD-98-186
     TITLE:  Customs Service: Aviation Program Missions, Resources, and
	     Performance Measures
      DATE:  09/09/1998
   SUBJECT:  Performance measures
	     Drug trafficking
	     Smuggling
	     Contraband
	     Law enforcement
	     Aircraft
	     Customs administration
	     Crime prevention
	     Program evaluation
IDENTIFIER:  Customs Service Aviation Program
	     Black Hawk Helicopter
	     P-3 Aircraft

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GAO/GGD-98-186

Cover
================================================================ COVER

Report to the Chairman, Subcommittee on Trade, Committee on Ways and
Means, House of Representatives

September 1998

CUSTOMS SERVICE - AVIATION PROGRAM
MISSIONS, RESOURCES, AND
PERFORMANCE MEASURES

GAO/GGD-98-186

Customs' Aviation Program

(264444)

Abbreviations
=============================================================== ABBREV

  ATF - Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms
  CNAC - Customs National Aviation Center
  DAICC - Domestic Air Interdiction Coordination Center
  DEA - Drug Enforcement Administration
  DOD - Department of Defense
  FAA - Federal Aviation Administration
  GPRA - Government Performance and Results Act
  ONDCP - Office of National Drug Control Policy
  PDD - Presidential Decision Directive
  USIC - United States Interdiction Coordinator

Letter
=============================================================== LETTER

B-279957

September 9, 1998

The Honorable Philip M.  Crane
Chairman, Subcommittee on Trade
Committee on Ways and Means
House of Representatives

Dear Mr.  Chairman:

The Customs Service is one of over 50 federal agencies engaged in the
effort to control the use of illegal drugs in the United States.
Because Customs' mission is basically to ensure that goods and people
entering the United States do so in compliance with trade laws,
Customs' drug-control role involves prevention, detection, and
seizure of drugs being smuggled across the borders.  In addition to
inspectors at over 300 ports of entry around the country, Customs
operates an aviation program that is to (1) detect, track, and assist
in the apprehension of nonscheduled aircraft, boats, and vehicles
attempting to smuggle drugs into the United States; (2) support U.S.
foreign counterdrug operations; and (3) provide law enforcement
support to Customs units as well as other federal, state, and local
law enforcement agencies.

This report responds to your January 15, 1998, request that we
provide information on the Customs Aviation Program.  Specifically,
this report describes (1) the program's missions and how they have
changed since fiscal year 1992, (2) the annual level of resources and
activities since fiscal year 1992, and (3) the adequacy of the
performance measures Customs uses to judge the results of its
aviation program.

   RESULTS IN BRIEF
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :1

Since the establishment of the Customs Aviation Program in 1969, its
basic mandate to use air assets to counter the drug smuggling threat
has not changed.  Originally, the Customs Aviation Program had two
principal missions:  (1) border interdiction of drugs being smuggled
by plane into the United States and (2) law enforcement support to
other Customs' offices as well as other federal, state, and local law
enforcement agencies.  In 1993, President Clinton instituted a new
policy to control drugs coming from South and Central America.
Because Customs aircraft were to be used to help carry out this
policy, foreign counterdrug operations became a third principal
mission for the aviation program.  Since then, the program has
devoted about 25 percent of its resources to the border interdiction
mission, 25 percent to foreign counterdrug operations, and 50 percent
to other law enforcement support.

Customs Aviation Program funding decreased from about $195 million in
fiscal year 1992 to about $135 million in fiscal year 1997--about 31
percent in constant (1992) or inflation-adjusted dollars.  While
available funds have decreased, operations and maintenance costs per
aircraft flight hour have increased.  Customs Aviation Program
officials said that this increase in costs is one of the reasons they
are flying fewer hours each year.  From fiscal year 1993 to fiscal
year 1997, the total number of flight hours for all missions
decreased by over one-third, from about 45,000 hours to about 29,000
hours.  The size of Customs' fleet dropped in fiscal year 1994, when
Customs took 19 surveillance aircraft out of service because of
funding reductions; and the fleet has remained at about 115 since
then.  The number of Customs Aviation Program onboard personnel has
dropped steadily, from a high of 956 in fiscal year 1992 to 745 by
the end of fiscal year 1997.

Customs has been using traditional law enforcement performance
measures for the aviation program (e.g., number of seizures, weight
of drugs seized, number of arrests).  These measures, however, are
used to track activity, not results or effectiveness.  Until 1997,
Customs also used an "air threat index" as an indicator of its
effectiveness in detecting illegal air traffic.  However, Customs has
discontinued using this indicator, as well as selected other
performance measures, because Customs determined that they were not
good measures of results and effectiveness.  Recognizing that these
measures were not providing adequate insights into whether the
program was producing desired results, Customs is developing new
performance measures in order to better measure results.

   BACKGROUND
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :2

The Customs Aviation Program was established in 1969 to reduce the
level of smuggling, increase smugglers' risk and cost, and improve
detection and apprehension of drug smuggling by aircraft, boats, and
vehicles.  The Customs Aviation Program gets its authority from a
number of sources.  The Office of National Drug Control Policy
(ONDCP) has designated the Customs Service as the lead federal agency
responsible for interdicting the movement of illicit drugs into the
United States.  In addition, 19 U.S.C.  1590 also provides the
specific legal authority under which Customs enforces aviation
smuggling laws.  Congress provided specific language regarding the
operations of the Customs Air Program beginning with Customs fiscal
year 1996 appropriation, contained in P.L.  104-52.  The provision
stated that the program's operations include, among other things,
"the interdiction of narcotics and other goods; the provision of
support to Customs and other Federal, State, and local agencies in
the enforcement or administration of laws enforced by the Customs
Service; and, at the discretion of the Commissioner of Customs, the
provision of assistance to Federal, State, and local agencies in
other law enforcement and emergency humanitarian efforts."

The Customs Aviation Program is headed by the Executive Director, Air
Interdiction Division, located in Washington, D.C.  The Executive
Director reports to the Assistant Commissioner, Customs Office of
Investigations.  Its field headquarters, the Customs National
Aviation Center (CNAC), located in Oklahoma City, OK, provides
operational, administrative, and logistical control and
accountability over all Customs aviation resources.  In addition, the
aviation program also operates its Domestic Air Interdiction
Coordination Center (DAICC) in Riverside, CA, which conducts radar
surveillance using various radar sources to identify, intercept, and
apprehend suspect aircraft, utilizing Customs or other agencies' air
assets.  The aviation program maintains 10 air branches and 10 air
units, as shown in appendix I.  The ten air units are subcomponents
of the branches and report to an air branch chief.  The aviation
program uses a variety of aircraft such as the P-3 long-range
aircraft, the Blackhawk helicopter, and the Citation II, a
high-speed, multijet fixed-wing aircraft.  A detailed inventory of
the Customs air fleet and pictures of selected aircraft are shown in
table 3 and figure 5.

   SCOPE AND METHODOLOGY
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :3

As agreed with your office, we used the approach described in this
section to respond to your request.  We performed our review at U.S.
Customs headquarters; the CNAC in Oklahoma City, OK; the DAICC in
Riverside, CA; the Customs Air Branch in Miami, FL; and the
Department of Defense's (DOD) headquarters and DOD's Southern
Command's headquarters in Miami, FL.  We also met with officials at
ONDCP, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S.
Interdiction Coordinator, and the U.S.  Coast Guard.

To determine Customs Aviation Program missions and whether they had
changed over time, we interviewed Customs Aviation Program officials
and the Assistant Commissioner, Office of Investigations.  We also
reviewed relevant legislation, executive branch policies and
guidance, Customs policies and procedures, the National Drug Control
Strategy, and interagency agreements.  In addition to these reviews,
we interviewed officials at ONDCP, DOD, DEA, and the U.S.  Coast
Guard.

To determine the Customs Aviation Program's resources and activities
for fiscal years 1992 to 1997, we reviewed congressional
appropriations to Customs for the program.  We examined Customs
documents showing staffing, aircraft, and staff support levels for
these years.  We also reviewed total annual program funding and
expenditures by mission.  To determine the activities of the aviation
program for fiscal years 1992 to 1997, we reviewed expenditures by
mission and data on flight hours for fiscal years 1992 through 1997.
To determine which aircraft take-off cancellations were related to
resource constraints and which were not, we analyzed the reasons for
the cancellations.  For those cancellations that occurred because an
aircraft or aircrew was not available, we categorized as resource
dependent.  For a small percentage of cancellations (4 percent) we
were unable to determine the reason for cancellation.  All other
cancellations we categorized as not resource dependent.  Customs
officials agreed with this approach.

To determine the adequacy of the performance measures Customs uses to
judge the results of its aviation program efforts, we interviewed
officials from Customs and other federal agencies involved in drug
control and interdiction and reviewed relevant documents provided by
these agencies.  We reviewed the ONDCP National Drug Control Strategy
and Customs documents showing the results of the aviation program
over the past 6 fiscal years.  To obtain information on Customs
Aviation Program performance measures for its antidrug activities, we
interviewed officials responsible for the Customs Aviation Program
and reviewed key agency documents such as Customs Aviation Program
performance plans developed for implementing the Government
Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA) P.L.  103-62.  We compared
the Customs Aviation Program performance measurement plans with GPRA
requirements to determine whether they conform to the principles of
the act.

We did our audit work between April and August 1998 in accordance
with generally accepted government auditing standards.

   AVIATION PROGRAM MISSIONS:
   BORDER INTERDICTION, FOREIGN
   COUNTERDRUG OPERATIONS, AND
   OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT SUPPORT
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :4

Since the establishment of the Customs Aviation Program in 1969, its
basic mandate to use air assets to counter the drug smuggling threat
has not changed.  The program was established to reduce the level of
drug smuggling; increase smugglers' risk and cost; and improve the
detection and apprehension of drug smuggling by aircraft, boats, and
vehicles.  What has changed, however, is the amount of resources
spent among the three specific mission areas--border interdiction,
foreign counterdrug operations, and other law enforcement support.
Program priorities, as measured by the amount of mission flight
hours, have shifted from border interdiction to supporting foreign
counterdrug operations.  The percent of flight hours used to provide
support to other law enforcement agencies\1

has decreased slightly.  Key events in Customs Aviation Program
history are shown in appendix II.

As shown in figure 1, flight hours for the border interdiction
mission decreased from about 40 percent of total flight hours in
fiscal year 1993 (the earliest year complete data were available) to
24 percent in fiscal year 1997.  Flight hours for the foreign
counterdrug operations mission increased from less than 1 percent in
fiscal year 1993 to 23 percent in fiscal year 1997.  During this
5-year period, the other law enforcement support mission decreased
slightly from about 59 percent of total mission flight hours to 53
percent.

   Figure 1:  Flight Hours By
   Mission

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

Source:  Customs Aviation Program data.

From fiscal year 1993 to fiscal year 1997, the total number of flight
hours for all missions decreased over one-third, from about 45,000
hours to about 29,000 hours, as shown in figure 2.

   Figure 2:  Total Mission Flight
   Hours

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

Source:  Customs Aviation Program data.

--------------------
\1 While the Customs Aviation Program provides support to other
federal, state, and law enforcement agencies, the majority of the
support provided is to other Customs' offices.

      BORDER INTERDICTION
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :4.1

An original mission of the aviation program was aimed at border
interdiction to counter the air drug smuggling threat along the
Southwest border.  By 1965, drug smugglers had turned to private
aircraft as an effective means of border penetration.  By 1969, major
unchallenged drug smuggling routes had been established along the
entire southern border of the United States.  At that time, Customs
owned only one single-engine aircraft.  By 1972, Customs had acquired
11 fixed-wing aircraft and 8 helicopters to challenge the increasing
drug threat and had established air branches in San Diego, CA;
Tucson, AZ; Corpus Christi, TX; and Miami, FL.

In the early 1980s as the air drug smuggling threat decreased along
the Southwest border and increased in the Gulf of Mexico and Florida
areas, the Customs Aviation Program, along with other Customs units
and other law enforcement agencies, began to address the critical
drug smuggling problem facing those areas.  DOD assets and Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA) radar were dedicated in support of the
aviation program's border interdiction mission.  Navy aircraft were
used to detect and notify Customs Service aircrews of suspect drug
smuggling targets.  In the mid-1980s, Customs acquired its first P-3
aircraft for long-range surveillance and patrol activity and
initiated its deployment of aerostats (i.e., radar mounted on
balloons that are tethered to land bases or ships) to provide
detection coverage along the southern border of the United States and
the Caribbean area.

In 1987, Congress directed the establishment of Command, Control, and
Intelligence centers to provide coordinated tactical control among
the various agencies for air interdiction.  Customs established a
center in Richmond Heights, FL, and one in Riverside, CA.  In 1994,
these centers were consolidated into the DAICC in Riverside, CA.

The border interdiction mission is generally accomplished through a
four-step process:  (1) using DOD or FAA radar or other means, such
as failure to file a flight plan with FAA or detection by patrol
aircraft, to detect aircraft that are suspected of drug smuggling;
(2) dispatching an interceptor aircraft, such as the high-speed,
multijet engine Citation II, to physically locate the suspect
aircraft and check the aircraft's registration number through various
law enforcement databases to determine whether it has been involved
in previous illegal activities; (3) employing tracker aircraft, such
as the P-3, to follow the suspect aircraft to its destination; and
(4) using a Blackhawk helicopter, which is a military aircraft
capable of being staffed with several Customs or other federal,
state, or local law enforcement officers, to stop the suspect
aircraft when it lands, detain the crew, search the aircraft, and, if
appropriate, arrest the suspect(s) for drug smuggling and seize any
illegal drugs.  As part of its border interdiction mission, Customs
aircraft are also deployed to interdict land and marine targets as
appropriate.

      FOREIGN COUNTERDRUG
      OPERATIONS
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :4.2

Customs started its foreign counterdrug operations in 1990.  They
began in Mexico and Central America with Customs aircraft being
utilized to provide early detection of drug trafficking flights and
other activities.  The foreign counterdrug operations were greatly
expanded in November of 1993, when President Clinton signed
Presidential Decision Directive 14 (PDD-14), which established a new
framework for international drug control efforts.  PDD-14 directed an
international drug control strategy to assist nations showing the
political will to combat drug-trafficking organizations and interdict
drug trafficking.  Additionally, PDD-14 called for a shift in the
focus of cocaine interdiction from the transit zone (i.e., the
2-million square-mile area between the United States and South
American borders) to the source zone (i.e., countries where cocaine
is produced, primarily Columbia and Peru).  Customs responded to
PDD-14 by dedicating increased resources to its foreign counterdrug
operations, primarily in South America, and less to border
interdiction.  These operations primarily support DOD, which is the
lead agency for detecting and monitoring drug smuggling aircraft in
the source zone countries.  Currently, Customs has aircraft and
aircrews in Mexico, Central America, and South America performing
counterdrug activities.

The Customs Aviation Program supports U.S.  foreign counterdrug
operations by temporarily assigning aircraft and aircrews from its
various air branches and units to Mexico, Central America, and South
America.  Customs aircraft and aircrews in these operations are used
to detect and follow suspect drug trafficking aircraft and, if
appropriate, alert host country apprehension forces.  Customs
aircraft and aircrews are also called upon to fly
intelligence-gathering missions in support of U.S.  foreign
counterdrug activities.  The P-3, and the Citation II are used in the
foreign counterdrug operations mission.

      OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT
      SUPPORT
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :4.3

Another original mission of the Customs Aviation Program was to
assist other Customs units, the Department of the Treasury, and other
federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies by providing other
aviation law enforcement support.  By 1996, Customs had acquired 61
aircraft, which are largely dedicated to the law enforcement support
mission.  In fiscal year 1997, Congress terminated the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) aviation program and directed
the Customs Aviation Program to assume ATF's aviation
responsibilities.  As a result, Customs established aviation units in
Sacramento, CA; Kansas City, KS; and Cincinnati; OH, for this new
responsibility.  Since 1993, support to other law enforcement
agencies, which also included emergency humanitarian efforts, have
accounted for about one-half of the Customs Aviation Program's
activities and seizures.  The Customs Aviation Program provides
support to other law enforcement agencies by using its aircraft to
provide surveillance of ongoing criminal investigations, such as
undercover operations or following a suspect vehicle.  The Customs
Aviation Program primarily uses single-engine, fixed-wing aircraft
and small helicopters in its law enforcement support role.

   CUSTOMS' AVIATION RESOURCES AND
   MISSION ACTIVITIES HAVE
   DECREASED SINCE FISCAL YEAR
   1992
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :5

Between fiscal years 1992 and 1997, the Aviation Program's overall
funding, aircraft mission takeoffs, personnel, and number of aircraft
have decreased.  As a result of these reductions, Customs air
branches have reduced their operations.

      AVIATION PROGRAM FUNDING HAS
      DECREASED SINCE FISCAL YEAR
      1992
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :5.1

While Customs' Aviation Program funding increased slightly in fiscal
year 1993, overall its budget, excluding capital investments,\2
decreased between fiscal years 1992 and 1997, as shown in figure 3.
In constant or inflation-adjusted dollars, the decrease was 31
percent.  The funding level for salaries and expenses, in constant
dollars, decreased by about 15 percent.  Similarly, funding for
operations and maintenance declined by about 40 percent in constant
dollars.  In fiscal years 1992 through 1994, salaries and expenses
comprised just over one-third of the annual program total, compared
with just under two-thirds of the total for operations and
maintenance.  However, in the last 3 fiscal years, salaries and
expenses increased to just under half of the total, while operations
and maintenance decreased to just over one-half.

   Figure 3:  Customs Aviation
   Program Funding

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

Source:  Aviation Program appropriations data provided by Customs.

According to Customs officials, these reductions forced the agency in
1994 to reduce its border interdiction response from 24 hours per day
to 16 hours per day at four of its air branches.  As of August 1998,
Miami, FL; Tucson, AZ; and San Angelo, TX; are the only 3 of the 10
air branches that provide 24-hours-per-day coverage.  Customs
officials told us that the branches work together as a means to
compensate, in part, for the reduced coverage each branch provides.
Miami air branch officials told us their branch works with the other
branches to provide coverage when needed.  In addition, Customs
officials told us they ended 24-hour maintenance shifts at all the
air branches and that only one maintenance crew is available during
the day at each air branch.

--------------------
\2 Capital investment funds are used primarily to modify existing
aircraft or to purchase new aircraft.  These funds are not included
because they are irregular amounts and would distort the data
describing program activities, if included.  For example, in fiscal
year 1992, the Customs Aviation Program received $41 million in
constant dollars to modify one P-3 aircraft received from the Navy
and to purchase seven support helicopters.  Customs received $77.8
million in fiscal year 1997 to modify two additional P-3s received
from the Navy and to purchase two additional support helicopters.

      CUSTOMS AVIATION PROGRAM
      MISSION TAKEOFFS HAVE
      DECREASED
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :5.2

As shown in table 1, the total number of aircraft mission takeoffs
decreased from about 22,000 in fiscal year 1992 to about 15,000 in
fiscal year 1997.  The number of times an aircraft did not take off
after originally being requested to do so, increased from 1,013 in
fiscal year 1992 to 2,076 in fiscal year 1997.  This translates into
a reduction from a 96 percent take-off rate in fiscal year 1992 to an
88 percent take-off rate in fiscal year 1997.

                                Table 1

                 Total Takeoffs and Cancelled Takeoffs
                 During Fiscal Years 1992 Through 1997

                                                              Take-off
                             Total               Cancelled        rate
Fiscal year               requests    Takeoffs    takeoffs     percent
----------------------  ----------  ----------  ----------  ----------
1992                        22,873      21,860       1,013          96
1993                        24,976      23,295       1,681          93
1994                        21,422      20,280       1,142          95
1995                        17,280      15,805       1,475          91
1996                        17,382      15,915       1,467          92
1997                        17,322      15,246       2,076          88
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Source:  Customs Aviation Program data.

Although the take-off rate decreased by 8 percent from fiscal year
1992 to fiscal year 1997, the actual number of cancelled takeoffs
more than doubled.  We analyzed the cancelled takeoffs for fiscal
years 1992 and 1997 as shown in table 2.  Most of the increase in the
number of cancelled takeoffs was attributable to reasons that did not
depend on resources, such as missions being cancelled or postponed by
the law enforcement officials originally requesting the flight.
However, other cancellations occurred because Customs Aviation
Program resources, such as the appropriate aircraft or aircrew for
the mission, were not available.  For example, in October 1996, the
California Riverside Aviation unit near the DAICC was requested to
provide backup aviation support to the State Narcotics Task Force on
a surveillance mission.  However, this support could not be provided
by the unit because the Cessna 210 aircraft or aircrew was not
available; therefore, the case agent cancelled the backup request.
In April 1997, several cancellations occurred because the Miami air
branch did not have an aviation interdiction officer available for
radar patrol.

                                      Table 2

                       Analysis of Cancelled Takeoffs During
                             Fiscal Years 1992 and 1997

                           Not resource         Unable to
    Resource dependent      dependent           determine             Total
    ------------------  ------------------  ------------------  ------------------
Fi
sc
al
ye
ar    Number   Percent    Number   Percent    Number   Percent    Number   Percent
--  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------
19       771        76       186        18        56         6     1,013       100
 92
19     1,150        56       838        40        88         4     2,076       100
 97
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source:  GAO analysis of Customs Aviation Program data.

      PERSONNEL LEVELS HAVE
      DECREASED SINCE FISCAL YEAR
      1992
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :5.3

As shown in figure 4, the Customs Aviation Program's number of
authorized personnel decreased by 11 percent between fiscal years
1992 and 1997, from 960 to 854.  Also, the program's number of actual
personnel decreased by 22 percent, from 956 to 745.

According to Customs officials, the aviation program lost personnel
due to budget reductions, a hiring freeze in fiscal years 1993
through 1996, and attrition due to hiring of Customs Aviation Program
pilots by commercial airlines.  During this time, an average of about
three people per month left the aviation program.  In fiscal year
1997, the hiring freeze ended and the aviation program began hiring
personnel.

   Figure 4:  Authorized and
   Actual Numbers of People on
   Board in the Aviation Program
   Have Decreased Since Fiscal
   Year 1992

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

Source:  Customs Aviation Program data.

In fiscal year 1992, Customs implemented a new strategic plan to
carry out its aviation program.  The plan called for an authorized
personnel level of 960, and the program received funding in fiscal
year 1992 for this personnel level.  However, program officials said
that the plan could not be carried out fully because foreign
counterdrug operations were added as a principal mission in fiscal
year 1994, and the budget was reduced in fiscal year 1995.

      CUSTOMS OPERATIONAL AIR
      FLEET DECLINED FROM THE END
      OF FISCAL YEAR 1992 THROUGH
      MAY 1998
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :5.4

Table 3 shows the total number of aircraft operated by the Customs
Aviation Program.  The number of aircraft declined about 10 percent
between fiscal years 1992 and 1997.  Customs officials said that
during fiscal years 1993 and 1994, the number of fixed-wing aircraft
decreased from 61 to 38 due to budget reductions.  In addition,
officials said that as of August 1998, they were unable to operate
all of their aircraft because of insufficient funding.  For example,
four additional high-speed Blackhawk helicopters were being kept in
storage because of the high costs of operation.  (See figure 5 for
pictures of selected aircraft.)

                                     Table 3

                       Customs Operational Aviation Fleet,
                        Fiscal Years 1992 Through May 1998

Aircraft
type            1992      1993      1994      1995      1996      1997      1998
----------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------  --------
Citation          26        26        26        26        26        26        26
 II
P-3                7         8         8         8         8         8         8
Blackhawk         18        16        16        12        12        12        12
Other -           66        61        38        39        43        42        47
 fixed-
 wing
Other -            7        21        23        23        20        23        25
 helicopter
================================================================================
Total            124       132       111       108       109       111       118
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source:  Customs Aviation Program data.

Operations and maintenance costs per aircraft flight hour have
increased over the last several years.  For example, the cost per
flight hour in real dollars to operate a P-3 increased from $2,979 in
1994 to $3,687 in 1997, for a Blackhawk helicopter the cost increased
from $2,419 to $3,859, and for the Citation II it increased from
$1,070 to $1,885.  Customs officials said increased costs was one of
the reasons they were flying fewer hours per year.  The other primary
reasons were that trained pilots and other aircrew members were being
dedicated to other missions or that aircraft were unavailable because
they have been dedicated to another mission or were undergoing
extended maintenance.

   Figure 5:  Selected Customs
   Aviation Program Aircraft

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

Source:  Customs Aviation Program.

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

   CUSTOMS' AVIATION PROGRAM IS
   DEVELOPING NEW PERFORMANCE
   MEASURES
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :6

Customs currently is developing performance measures to more
adequately report the results for its aviation program.  The Customs
Aviation Program uses measures such as seizures and the number of
suspect aircraft detected to gauge the results of its efforts.  For
example, in fiscal year 1997, Customs reported seizing about 22,900
pounds of cocaine and about 9,100 pounds of marijuana.  In addition,
for their foreign counterdrug operations, Customs reported a track
rate of 57 percent in the transit zone.  The track rate is the
percentage of suspected narcotics trafficking aircraft that were
detected and tracked by Customs P-3 aircraft and which were
transferred to interdiction or apprehension forces or tracked to the
landing and delivery site in the transit zone.

However, these performance measures track activity, not results or
effectiveness.  Several Customs Aviation Program officials, for
example, made this point by noting that it is unclear whether an
increase in seizures indicates that Customs has become more effective
or that the amount of drug smuggling has increased.  We have
previously reported that traditional measures, such as the number of
seizures, pose problems for measuring the performance of drug
interdiction programs.\3 We have also recognized that developing
sound, results-oriented performance measures and accompanying data is
still a difficult and time-consuming task.\4

Customs has also used other measures, such as an air-threat index, in
an attempt to measure the results of its aviation program.  The
air-threat index used various indicators, such as the number of
stolen and/or seized aircraft, to determine the potential threat of
air drug smuggling.  However, the air-threat index, as well as
selected other performance measures, have been discontinued because
Customs determined they were not good measures of results and
effectiveness.  For example, the aircraft seizures indicator took
into account only those seizures in which the aircraft was seized,
eliminating those events related to smuggling where drugs were seized
but for one reason or another, the aircraft was not seized.

Customs Aviation Program officials said that, given their limited
success with earlier efforts to measure program results, Customs is
currently revising its performance measures.  Customs Aviation
Program officials told us that one of the primary obstacles to
developing meaningful performance measures is that much of the
program's success depends on the actions of other federal departments
and state and local law enforcement agencies, as well as the
cooperation of foreign government law enforcement agencies.  The
officials said the measures they are developing also need to be more
consistent with GPRA, which seeks to shift the focus of federal
management and decisionmaking away from concentrating on the
activities performed to a focus on the results of those activities
that are undertaken.  Consequently, Customs is developing a
performance measure that quantifies the increase in the cost of doing
business for a drug smuggler as a result of Customs Aviation Program
activity.

Customs is also now developing a performance measure to judge the
change in a drug smugger's behavior.  This would be an assessment of
Customs' success in forcing the drug trafficker to change the routes
and/or methods used for smuggling drugs into the U.S.  Customs
officials said that these new measures will be part of their fiscal
year 2000 budget request.

--------------------
\3 Drug Interdiction Funding Continues to Increase but Program
Effectiveness Is Unknown (GAO/GGD 91-10, Dec.  11, 1990).

\4 Executive Guide:  Effectively Implementing the Government
Performance and Results Act (GAO/GGD 96-118, June 1, 1996).

   AGENCY COMMENTS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :7

We provided a draft of this report for comment to the Secretary of
the Treasury and the Commissioner of Customs.  On August 6, 1998, we
met with the Acting Executive Director of the Customs Aviation
Program and members of his staff who provided oral comments for
Treasury and Customs.  These officials concurred with our draft
report and provided some technical comments, which we incorporated
where appropriate.

---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :7.1

As agreed with your staff, unless you publicly announce its contents
earlier, we plan no further distribution of this report until 10 days
from the date of this letter.  At that time, we will send copies of
this report to the Ranking Minority Member of your Subcommittee, the
Chairmen and Ranking Minority Members of other congressional
committees with jurisdiction over the Customs Service, the Secretary
of the Treasury, and the Commissioner of Customs.  We will also make
copies available to others upon request.  The major contributors to
this report are listed in appendix III.  If you or your staff have
any questions on this report, please call me on (202) 512-8777.

Norman J.  Rabkin
Director, Administration
 of Justice Issues

LOCATION OF CUSTOMS AVIATION
PROGRAM FACILITIES
=========================================================== Appendix I

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

Source:  Customs Aviation Program data.

CUSTOMS AVIATION PROGRAM HISTORY
========================================================== Appendix II

   (See figure in printed
   edition.)

Source:  Customs Aviation Program data.

MAJOR CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS REPORT
========================================================= Appendix III

GENERAL GOVERNMENT DIVISION,
WASHINGTON, D.C.

Weldon McPhail, Assistant Director
David Alexander, Senior Social Science Analyst
Michael Little, Communications Analyst

LOS ANGELES FIELD OFFICE

Samuel Van Wagner, Evaluator-in-Charge
Lisa Shibata, Evaluator

OFFICE OF GENERAL COUNSEL

Jan Montgomery, Assistant General Counsel

*** End of document. ***