Hanscom Field, already a Climate Disaster, is now a hub for ICE Crimes

If you've been following XR Boston since April 2024, you've heard a lot about the 21 rebels arrested for protesting the proposed expansion of Hanscom Field. The expansion would add approximately 6,000 additional private jet flights annually, which would emit an additional ~150,000 tons of CO2 yearly. To put that into perspective, the additional carbon emissions could cause Hanscom Field alone to cancel out 70% of the climate gains from solar power in Massachusetts. We include that fact in a lot of articles, because we genuinely can't stop thinking about it.

Due to the efforts of XR and other anti-expansion organizations, the developers' original 2024 Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) received over 1,500+ critical public comments and was rejected by EEA Secretary Tepper. The developers were told that they would need to return to the drawing board and produce a supplemental DEIR in order to move forward. If they are successful on their second attempt, the expansion would become the single largest private jet hangar expansion at Hanscom Field, and would add as much hangar capacity as was built at Hanscom incrementally over the prior 60 years. This Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Report will likely be released without warning, but will be available for public comment. The developers want us to miss it, but we are watching closely. The report is expected to become available in late summer or early autumn of this year.

How could Hanscom possibly become an even bigger outrage? As reported by WBUR, "Sheriff Joseph McDonald's office has taken 545 ICE detainees to the Hanscom airport since President Trump took office, from January 20 through May, according to data obtained in a public records request." Often, the government is flying people to large ICE detention centers in southern states, including Louisiana and Texas, to await deportation hearings. Just as often, their families are not given information about where they are being sent, or when they could possibly return.

The Massachusetts Port Authority, MassPort, which oversees Hanscom and Logan, does not have data on ICE flights, according to spokeswoman Jennifer Mehigan. She said the government doesn’t notify the airport about the flights; it mainly uses charter planes owned by a variety of private companies. Plymouth County Sherriff Joseph McDonald says that his deputies are not involved in ICE arrests or arranging the flights. "We don't have any role as far as making those decisions," says McDonald.

According to our friends at GroundICE, Signature Aviation is a major culprit. Signature Aviation is owned by three separate investment firms: Cascade Investment LLC, a privately held company used to invest the assets of Bill Gates and The Gates Foundation, has 30% ownership. Blackrock, a publicly traded investment company, holds 35% ownership via its subsidiary Global Infrastructure Partners. GIP has packaged its holdings in Signature into a private equity fund called Global Infrastructure Partners IV. GroundICE reports that Blackrock has also packaged some of its holdings in Signature into a private equity fund called "Blackstone Infrastructure Partners," which has 35% ownership.

However, it's not like the state is blameless. Before potential deportees are loaded onto Signature Aviation's planes, ICE pays the Plymouth County jail $215 per bed per day to house them, according to the federal contract. Plymouth Sheriff McDonald said his office does not financially benefit from the arrangement; federal payments go to the state. This means that not only is Signature Aviation benefiting from ICE abductions by providing flights, but Governor Healey is receiving a check on Massachusetts' behalf for imprisoning them beforehand.

The use of Hanscom Field to transport our abducted neighbors isn't just a human rights crisis, it's a climate crisis.

According to Tom Cartwright, a former financial executive turned immigration advocate who’s become a leading authority on the air transfers, 16 ICE charters flew through Hanscom airport last month – four times the number in May last year. And since President Trump took office, the agency has flown more than 40 flights through Hanscom, he said. Since some private jets can burn enough fuel in just over two hours to equal the average person's annual emission, and these flights are largely heading south of the Mason Dixon line, the climate impacts are enormous. By increasing the ICE flights out of Hanscom, the federal government is creating new and measurable obstacles to Massachusetts' state climate goals.

What can we do?

If you are an American citizen, you have the right to engage in peaceful protest against tyranny and oppression. XR Boston provides regular Peacekeeping & De-Escalation Trainings to help you participate in non-violent direct action, and we recommend participating in one. At XR, we believe that civil disobedience is the path to change.

However, if you aren't in a position to protest on the ground, GroundICE is spearheading a letter writing campaign to pressure the leadership of Cascade Investment and the independent boards of Blackrock and Blackstone to stop Signature Aviation from assisting ICE. You can contact them at Info@GroundICE.org for more information.