Spain’s Guardia Civil police on Saturday said they had dismantled a criminal gang that flew helicopters to smuggle hashish into the country from Morocco, in a rare operation against aerial drug trafficking.
The helicopters, capable of transporting between 500 and 900 kg of drugs, flew across the Mediterranean to southern Spain, landing in sparsely populated areas of the province of Almeria, where several people were waiting to unload the hashish and transport it in vans to various storage facilities.
It would then be distributed by road to other European countries, the Guardia Civil said in a statement.
The helicopters were hidden in warehouses and on farms in Almeria and Murcia, awaiting subsequent shipments.
The Guardia Civil raided a property in Níjar (Almeria), where they found 25 bales of hashish weighing 657 kg.
Subsequently, five more raids were carried out at different locations in Malaga, Almeria and Murcia, where five firearms, 2,900 euros in cash, several vehicles and one of the helicopters used in the operation were seized.
Six arrests were made in the operation, which also involved Moroccan, Belgian and Swedish law enforcement.
Spain’s close ties with Latin America and proximity to Morocco make it a key entry point for drugs into Europe, but smuggling typically takes place by sea, using high-speed launches or jet-skis.
Spanish police have in the past year also uncovered networks that used drones to transport drugs from Morocco.
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#OperacionesGC | Detenidas 6 personas por introducir hachís desde Marruecos utilizando helicópteros.
👝Han sido intervenidos 657 kg de hachís y 5 armas de fuego, además de uno de los helicópteros usados para el narcotráfico.https://t.co/Id2Q6Qm5m7 pic.twitter.com/mZTKFTZ2wN— Guardia Civil (@guardiacivil) December 13, 2025
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