The U.S. Coast Guard, in collaboration with Customs and Border Protection officials, has launched a series of “Alien Expulsion Flight Operations” between California and Texas as part of a nationwide effort to boost immigration law enforcement.

The Coast Guard announced last week that a surge of resources from Coast Guard Air Stations across the country, including Elizabeth City, Kodiak, Sacramento, San Diego, and Hawaii, has been deployed to support the newly implemented surveillance flight operations.

In line with directives from one of President Donald Trump’s recent executive orders, the operation seeks to detect and deter illegal immigration, drug smuggling, and any other potential threats before they reach America’s borders with an organized pattern of flight surveillance. The effort, coordinated by the 11th Coast Guard District in California, relies on an extensive network of partnerships among government agencies, including the Departments of Homeland Security and Defense.

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“The Coast Guard’s current role is to assist with the national transport of aliens to designated locations in Texas and California, where the Department of Defense will transport the aliens internationally,” the Coast Guard said in a press release on January 28.

However, the U.S. has faced some resistance in its efforts to deport detained illegal aliens recently. Last week, Mexico denied permission for a military plane carrying deportees to land on its soil, but the reason for the refusal is unclear. Colombia also initially pushed back against accepting deportees but reversed its stance late Sunday evening following threats of tariffs by Trump, as The Dallas Express reported.

The Coast Guard operation is part of a much larger effort by the Department of Defense to stem unlawful immigration in response to Trump’s directives.

“In short order, the Department will develop and execute additional missions in cooperation with DHS, federal agencies, and state partners to address the full range of threats outlined by the President at our nation’s borders,” Secretary of Defense Robert Salesses said in a written statement late last month.

“President Trump directed action from the Department of Defense on securing our nation’s borders and made clear he expects immediate results. That is exactly what our military is doing under his leadership,” he added.