El Jobero Airstrip

The airstrip was almost certainly closed and disabled by Mexican authorities, likely the Mexican Army (SEDENA), as part of counter-narcotics operations. Its remote location in a sparsely populated area near the U.S. border made it a strategic asset for drug trafficking organizations. Satellite imagery of the site clearly shows large trenches or berms dug across the runway at regular intervals, a common method used by the military to permanently disable such clandestine or unauthorized landing strips to prevent their use by smugglers.

The site is completely abandoned and defunct. The runway remains clearly visible from the air but is unusable for any aircraft due to the deliberate damage (trenches/berms). The land has reverted to its natural, undeveloped desert state. There are no buildings, hangars, or any infrastructure remaining at the site. It exists only as a scar on the landscape, visible via satellite.

El Jobero Airstrip (MX-1553 is a non-official, database-specific identifier, not a formal ICAO code) held no official or commercial significance. It was a private, unpaved dirt strip. Its primary function was likely twofold: 1) Legitimate private use by local ranchers for operating light aircraft (e.g., Cessna, Piper) to manage vast, remote properties in the Chihuahuan Desert. 2) Illicit use as a clandestine landing zone ('pista clandestina') for smuggling operations. Given its proximity to the U.S. border across from the Big Bend region of Texas, it was ideally situated for trafficking drugs, weapons, or people via small aircraft, bypassing ground-level border security.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the El Jobero Airstrip. Its reopening is virtually impossible for several reasons: 1) Lack of economic need, as the area is extremely remote with a very small population. 2) Its history as a suspected narco-airstrip means any attempt to repair it would immediately attract intense scrutiny and intervention from both Mexican and U.S. law enforcement and military. 3) The land is likely privately owned (part of a ranch or 'ejido') with no public interest in funding or operating an airfield. For all practical purposes, its closure is permanent.