Authorities in Awe of Drug Runners' Jungle-Built, Kevlar-Coated Supersubs

OMG! The drug sub has my head, a Raritan Atlantes.

- Paul Artola
Ellicott City, Maryland

They're getting more and more sophisticated. What I cannot figure out, is why the engines are so rusty. It almost seems like it sat for a while and had some water inside like they forgot about it, then went back to working on it. I used to live in Belize in 2005 and heard of them building subs down there back then.

I appreciate the fact that Kevlar and Carbon are not the cheapest building materials but how they come to an estimated 5 million dollar construction cost amazes me.

All of those materials have to be imported into Colombia, and Colombia has import duties and such, plus the labor and workforce to get all of that stuff into the jungle. The question is, how did they get this far along with it, before someone found out. I'm guessing though, that all of the local officials probably have their hands in the cookie jar.

What struck me most was the warning sticker on the switchboard locker door.

I'm surprised they would try to build these in the jungle. I just can't imagine it would be that difficult to build it in some third world shipyard as a 'science or hobby' project, then transporting them underwater to their pick up locations.

Yes but then that gets into other problems. You have to show Millions of dollars going out of the country to another country to pay for it. Remember, drug runners don't exactly use banks, if they can avoid it.

The other thing is, jungle labor is very cheap and they can supervise the project without flying in and out of the country. They probably also feel they can better keep it a secret. If it was built in a 3rd world shipyard, a project of that magnitude would end up in some publications somehow.

The money would be the least of the problems I would think. And there are ways
around that.

But if its really out in the jungle imagine the logistics of power, power tools, lifting problems, raw materials, etc, etc

I'd do a build like that where ordering resin and glass by the ton would be normal, and where lots of big warehouses are at the docks, and where there is an existing boat building industry, and where if you were "found out" half way through the build it wouldn't really matter. Nothing illegal about building a private sub for a "wealthy adventurer".

Rather than fiberglass, just build it of concrete...wonderful product in compression....ferrocement. Lots of discussions here:
http://www.boatdesign.net/forums/boat-design/concrete-submarine-24361.html

Those aren't Built in the Jungle they are built in a boat yard in Central America that are owned by the drug kingpins ...

If that is the case, then why would they take it from the boatyard to the middle of the jungle without finishing it first? I believe it was built there, and a work in progress. It said in the article it was built there and all of the parts had to be ferried up the river in little boats