A Predator UAV climbed into the early morning Arizona sky June 1 and headed east to conduct the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's first surveillance flight along the U.S.-Mexican border in Texas.

..... Predators have proven valuable for patrolling the border in Arizona, New Mexico and California, where they have been operating since 2005. They are credited with contributing to the seizure of more than 25,000 pounds of marijuana and the arrest of more than 5,000 illegal immigrants. In 2006, a patrolling Predator crashed in the Arizona desert.

defensenews.com