Helicopters believed to be working with a border wall contractor have been flying survey routes over parts of the Big Bend region in recent days, including locations inside and around Big Bend National Park, according to observers tracking flight paths through aviation apps.
A post shared by the Terlingua-based business Basecamp Terlingua said Robinson R44 helicopters have been transporting contractor representatives while conducting aerial surveys for possible staging areas for construction materials such as steel and concrete.
Screenshots from a flight-tracking application show a series of waypoints labeled from Point A through Point E stretching across the region.
According to the analysis posted online, the flight path begins near the communities of Terlingua and Study Butte before moving deeper into the park. A waypoint labeled Point B appears along River Road near Dominguez Spring and Loop Camps 1 and 2 inside Big Bend National Park.
The route then continues east toward an area along the road to the Boquillas Port of Entry near Rio Grande Village, identified as Point C.
Additional points appear outside the park boundary. One waypoint sits near the Black Gap Wildlife Management Area along FM 2627 in the Heath Canyon area, while another location lies farther downstream outside the park.
The flights come amid ongoing debate about the construction of new border barriers in the Big Bend region along the Rio Grande. Critics have argued that building a wall through the rugged terrain could disrupt wildlife corridors and impact protected public lands.
The social media post also noted that a recently updated federal map no longer shows steel border wall segments in large portions of Big Bend National Park, though proposed barrier construction remains mapped in areas near Big Bend Ranch State Park.
Officials have not publicly confirmed whether the helicopter surveys are directly tied to federal border wall construction planning.
Earlier this month, the Department of Homeland Security awarded a $960 million contract to Barnard Construction Company for border barrier construction in parts of Presidio County, west of the park.
It remains unclear whether the aerial surveys are related to that project or to other federal planning efforts along the border corridor.
