Pale Ale on the move
Two United States Air Force P-9A Pale Ale maritime patrol aircraft made a brief stop in Curaçao on December 10th, following a prolonged absence from the island.
N986HA (callsign BAT 86) and N991HA (callsign BAT 91) departed Balboa Panama Pacifico International Airport (BLB/MPPA), landing in Curaçao just after lunch. Both aircraft were airborne again just after 2pm, heading North around the Maiquatia Flight Information Region (FIR) to Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago (POS/TTTP).
The four P-9As, operated by Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC), have been frequent residents of the Cooperative Security Location in Curaçao over the years. Tasked with detecting and monitoring drug trafficking vessels in the Joint Inter-Agency Task Force (South) area of responsibity, they can be seen almost daily on Flightradar24 as they proceed to and from their patrol areas. Last September, their main operating base was moved from Liberia, Costa Rica (LIR/MRLB) to BLB/MPPA.
N556PM continues operations from Panama and N997MG has been in Bangor, Maine (BGR/KBGR) since December 1st, likely for maintenance.
A fifth aircraft, N541AV, was purchased from Berry Aviation in 2023 and subsequently registered to SNC but has yet to join the fleet in operations.
(I have added a photo of N997MG taken previously. Sadly, I am missing a photo of N556PM)
(Click on an image to enlarge)
© 2025 Patrick Lalande. All rights reserved.
