Opinion: Drone attack in Tijuana a glimpse of a new kind of narco war 

On Oct. 15 in Tijuana, three drones carrying explosives dropped their payload onto a state government legal facility. No officials were killed or injured, but the attack sent shockwaves through one of Mexico’s busiest border cities. It wasn’t a random act of violence. It was a message — and a warning.

The use of drones by criminal organizations marks a new phase in the evolution of Mexico’s cartels. What once were tools for surveillance and smuggling are now weapons of intimidation and terror. The kind of technology used in the Ukraine-Russia war to strike armored vehicles has made its way into the hands of traffickers who operate just a few miles from the U.S. border.

This should concern both Mexico and the United States. Organized crime is entering a technological era, and our governments aren’t ready.

In recent years, drone attacks have been documented in Michoacán, Jalisco and Guanajuato, often linked to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. However, those incidents were mostly confined to rural areas, targeting rival groups or small towns. What happened in Tijuana is different — it’s a major urban hub, home to more than 2 million people and the busiest land border crossing in America. A drone strike here isn’t just another cartel tactic; it’s a signal that this technology has reached the doorstep of the United States.

Drones give organized crime a new kind of power. They are cheap, easy to buy and hard to trace. A single operator can fly one from miles away, avoiding the street battles that once drew police attention. A few hundred dollars’ worth of equipment can now carry explosives capable of damaging buildings or killing targets. In a city like Tijuana, where law enforcement is already under-resourced and outgunned, this new aerial threat tilts the balance even further toward the cartels.

The United States understands that this isn’t just Mexico’s problem. On the night of the attack, the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana issued a security warning, acknowledging the broader threat. The same networks using drones to target government offices can also deploy them to smuggle drugs, track Border Patrol movements or deliver fentanyl across the border. And while the U.S. has invested billions in walls and sensors to stop people and vehicles, far less has been spent on aerial or cyber surveillance systems capable of detecting small, low-flying drones.

Just as worrying, U.S. consumer drone markets have become an unregulated supply chain. Most drones sold online or in stores can be easily modified to carry explosives. There are virtually no restrictions on resale, customization or cross-border transport. Meanwhile, cartels continue to exploit gaps in gun and technology regulation on both sides of the border.

In Mexico, the problem runs deeper. Local police are rarely trained or equipped to deal with technological threats. Intelligence agencies have been weakened by political interference. And despite years of “security cooperation,” the Mexican and U.S. governments still lack a coordinated strategy for emerging threats like drones or digital surveillance.

Instead, each country keeps fighting its own narrow version of the war on drugs — Mexico battling cartels on the ground, and the U.S. waging a demand-side campaign that barely touches the real flow of weapons, money and technology. Both are losing ground to groups that adapt faster than the institutions meant to contain them.

But there’s still time to act. Both nations could start by creating a binational task force on drone and tech-enabled crime, focusing on regulation, intelligence sharing and detection. The U.S. could tighten oversight of drone exports and components, while Mexico invests in training and anti-drone defenses for local law enforcement. Joint operations should prioritize dismantling the networks that supply cartels with both weapons and technology.

And what’s most needed is a mindset shift. Cartels are now tech-enabled paramilitary organizations. Treating them as such requires coordination, innovation and a willingness to admit that the threat has evolved.

If we fail to recognize this turning point, we may soon see more than one government office attacked from the sky. The war on drugs — long fought on the ground — is now airborne.

And neither Mexico nor the United States is ready.

Navarro is community opinion editor at The San Diego Union-Tribune. She is a transfronteriza who lives on both sides of the border.