• If You Are Having Trouble Logging In with Your Old Username and Password, Please use this Forgot Your Password link to get re-established.
  • Hey! Be sure to login or register!

Bush Pilot turned drug runner

L

LUCIFER

Registered User
I came across this youtube video interview. The interview is done by Mikey from Buffalo Air. The guy he is interviewing is Raymond Boulanger. He has many stories and has flown many different planes. It is almost 2 hours, I couldn't walk away. A good watch while sheltering in place.

Notorious Pilot for the CIA and then the Colombian Cartels!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpjLA64T_eo
​
 
All I can say is Wow. He comes across as the real deal. He has a combination of charm and arrogance that makes him a seemingly likeable guy. And even though he spent 20 years in a Canadian prison he's completely unrepentant for flying tons and tons of drugs into North America from Columbia and Mexico.

The Barry Seal movie is mentioned and the two knew each other. Seal met an untimely end. If I were Raymond I think I'd be a little concerned about that too and was surprised at some of his comments about the folks he worked with and their operations even though it was many years ago now.
 
In Columbia, in the early '70's, on a 3 month hang gliding safari, we were trying to find out how to gain access to one big mountain outside of Barranquilla that was really close to the coast. Lot's of vertical drop with the 3 to 1 glides we had then was needed, these were just sleds rides. The consistent advice we got from the locals at to this area was "don't go." One in particular told us they we'd be mistaken for police, and shot. Or, they would think you were looking to buy drugs, and be shot. Or....you get the idea, we bagged it. But I remembered being told the ranch in question that seemed to control access to the area, had an airplane welded above the front gate. Years later, came across this, and it rang a bell. https://www.google.com/search?q=Pab...KHXp3AP8Q9QEwAHoECAkQFA#imgrc=haJ9ADcWY7-tCM:
 
I started watching it. Interesting guy. He did 20 years time? Wow. The guy interviewing him was kind of a goof ball and hard to watch. I wouldn't mind reading his book; I hope they translate it to English.
 
Last edited:
Lucky he only got 20 years. Back in the day around here there used to be a rather nefarious character that rumor had it was in the export/import business, had a fast twin he used for work. Paid for everything in cash on his house build, one day he left on a business trip and was never heard from again, house sat half-finished for years.
 
OLDCROWE said:
Lucky he only got 20 years. Back in the day around here there used to be a rather nefarious character that rumor had it was in the export/import business, had a fast twin he used for work. Paid for everything in cash on his house build, one day he left on a business trip and was never heard from again, house sat half-finished for years.
Click to expand...
During the interview, he said some key things; he asked no questions, and, he carried out the work he had agreed to do. As well, he wasn’t friends with those he did business with. Pretty good recipe for survival I’d say, and, is a good lesson on how to conduct business. Any business.
 
180_jeff said:
I started watching it. Interesting guy. He did 20 years time? Wow. The guy interviewing him was kind of a goof ball and hard to watch. I wouldn't mind reading his book; I hope they translate it to English.
Click to expand...
Lighten up a tad. Who watches the interviewer when you have a chance to listen to this guy rattle off tail numbers, makes and models one right after another!
 
This is a fascinating story from the other side of the flying game. I have seen that C-46 at Norman Cay, though I though it was a right side up DC-3. Now I know the real story. During those years I had a Tampa controller in the jump seat when he showed me a DC-6 parked in the middle of a field about 10 miles north of KTPA. He said it was found parked there abandoned and empty one morning. A week later it was gone. I wonder if this was one of his flights? The mention of corrosion corner in Miami brings back memories. There were all sorts of these old airplanes parked there including some Northrop YC-125s. I wonder what happened to those?

I can understand how easy it could be for a young pilot to get caught up into that "occupation". I could tell you about some people who transitioned to the "other side".
 
He started by talking about his start in flying and he said he flew Fleet Canuck ENO.
Mine was C-FENO before I brought it into the US. Wish the old Journey logs were still around.
Dave
 
As a young kid in the early 70’s before I moved to AK, I worked for an ag pilot at a small grass strip in Indiana. One day a King Air showed up (2000 foot grass strip) and went into the hangar. Spent about a week and left. The arrival and departure were at night. At the time I didn’t know or care enough to ask questions. Shortly thereafter the guy I worked for started spending money on things like a new truck, new Cessna Agwagon, etc... Before he died he told me that he made a pretty good chunk of cash for letting them use the hangar to tank the King Air.. No doubt it was legit!!
 
mam90 said:
.. Before he died he told me that he made a pretty good chunk of cash for letting them use the hangar to tank the King Air.. No doubt it was legit!!
Click to expand...
Did they also change the N number?

40+ years ago I watched an old 310 practicing short field operations at my little airport. Turned out that it belonged to a couple of my airline co-workers. One of whom had been terminated for incompetency. He had gone to work for a Caribbean airline which eventually merged with another major line. A month or two after this, the 310 landed at another nearby airport where the same two occupants were met as they were exiting the cockpit by some men with badges. :cry: :howdy :hanged: There are more chapters to this story which would be better told in person. Some of which never made the mass media.
 
Don’t know about the N number. I was too young to notice that kind of stuff. It was funny that the ag pilot told me he did several “jobs” for these guys, but was really proud that he never personally handled the “stuff”. That was apparently his moral line. He said he could have gotten more involved but bailed after a short time.
 
It's interesting stuff, but I don't romanticize it. Never forget how many dead bodies he stands on as he tells his tale.
 
He did a minimum of 20 years in prison, and it’s a huge sentence here! And after that, I think he had to stay within a range of 2-3 kilometers of his transition house for 5 years... it’s really a huge sentence for Quebec!! Almost any murder does 1/3 of their sentences and their prevention dentention count for twice... Raymond is lucky to be alive but not too lucky for his sentence...


Sent from my iPhone using SuperCub.Org
 
During the late 70s and all through the 80s I made a lot of sky dives in Florida. Planes came in at night to the drop zones but were gone by morning. I knew a guy who had to over fly Florida due to weather and landed in N Carolina to wait out the weather south. Got caught up there and got life for it. Sentence later reduced and he got out. Went straight after that.

Jim
 
The last Raymond’s flight, he doesn’t got over USA, he have flown over Atlantic ocean, and entered Canada over Halifax and then heading Casey’s old military airport, that’s why he have got caught, the flight have been longer than supposed and the guy who was supposed to wait for them and the drug have leaved Casey.


Sent from my iPhone using SuperCub.Org
 
I was surprised to hear he learned to fly and solo'd here at my home town in Wabush, I was not expecting to hear that! wish he would of mentioned the call sign of that J3, he did mention his instructors name I'll have to ask around town and see if I can figure it out.
 
An old advertisement from the mid 80’s 08E2CCC6-4B8D-4204-8C9A-A22177FA4834.jpeg
 

Attachments

  • 08E2CCC6-4B8D-4204-8C9A-A22177FA4834.jpeg
    08E2CCC6-4B8D-4204-8C9A-A22177FA4834.jpeg
    107.6 KB · Views: 692
I spent 13 years as a police officer in Albany,NY In the 70’s and early 80’s. I got to see the real end result of the drug runners. I’ll save my opinion because most people wouldn’t understand.
 
Couldn’t agree with you more. The pain, hurt, and suffering that was left behind by the actions of a few for whatever their reason is inexcusable. Even more sad is that it still lives with us today. Growing up through the 60’s and 70’s I was fortunate enough to realize all the sacrifices that my parents made in their lives each day to give me the opportunity to succeed in my own life by working hard and respecting others. Thankfully the love and respect that I had for them in return kept me, as it did for many of us, along the right path, when the wrong choices were offered to us.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

O
Bush flying in Papua Indonesia
Replies
1
Views
2K
BritishCubBloke
B
WindOnHisNose
Roy Rogers...King of Cowboys was also a Pilot
Replies
17
Views
8K
skywagon8a
skywagon8a
D
Crashes his Supercub in the forest and walks away
Replies
19
Views
22K
Seaworthy
Seaworthy
wtxdragger
The Approach-Landing
2
Replies
34
Views
22K
cubdriver2
cubdriver2
Steve Pierce
An Interesting Pilot; John Lear
Replies
4
Views
3K
Cub junkie
Cub junkie
Back
Top