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bhh's avatar
bhh
Explorer
Feb 06, 2014

Get paid to drive?

My son's-in-law company just paid big bucks (about $7K) to have a piece of equipment with "secret" status shipped from Arizona to Michigan. (He does DOD research projects) It had to be in a secure safe and be supervised by an awake person at all times. It arrived morning in an RV outfitted with an approved safe, driven by a husband and wife team. Driving secret stuff across the country in their RV is how they make their living! Sounds kinda fun! (Except for that awake at all times part, but presumably they don't always have cargo!) I would add, I'm not sure I'd want to be driving an RV through Michigan in February, either. They have had over 200" of snow already this season.
  • bhh wrote:
    Sounds kinda fun! (Except for that awake at all times part, but presumably they don't always have cargo!)


    In order to transit Secret material - both members of the 'team' must have Top Secret clearances. They will also need commercial drivers licenses.

    They have to have the vehicle and safe inspected and certified by the federal agency sponsoring the transfer. They likely will not have the ability to open the safe. There will be reporting requirements for the trip.

    It won't be RV traveling. It will be long distance truck driving in an RV.

    While the individual trips will be under strict requirements, with no 'cargo' the couple can do normal RV traveling.

    They would just put thousands of 'working' miles on the RV each year, depreciation and travel costs - and hope they actually made money on each trip.
  • +1

    Francesca Knowles wrote:


    And I doubt it's going to result in a bunch of Spy-Type Folks hijacking RV's on the off chance there might be something "secret" in them. ;)
  • When I was in college in El Paso, I worked part-time for a large bank. Every day at 2:30, a very old man from a Juarez bank came to our bank to meet me. He and I then carried $250,000 to 400,000 U.S.D., which was all of the mexican money (pesos) that our bank had received in the last 24 hours, to two different Juarez banks. We would just park where ever we could, walk 1/2 to 2 blocks, and deliver the pesos. Just an old man and a dorky college kid. Who would have ever thought what we had?? You never know!
  • Terryallan wrote:
    Is it just barely possible, That telling the world about secret DOD stuff being transported by RV. Is not such a good idea??????:h

    It's no big surprise to most of the world. Banks/Governements etc. have been using the "hide in plain sight" trick for years....better camouflage than those conspicuous Brinks trucks.

    And I doubt it's going to result in a bunch of Spy-Type Folks hijacking RV's on the off chance there might be something "secret" in them. ;)
  • Terryallan wrote:
    Is it just barely possible, That telling the world about secret DOD stuff being transported by RV. Is not such a good idea??????:h


    LOL. I almost fell out of my chair. :)
  • DutchmenSport wrote:
    It's not uncommon at all for the DoD to use "stealth" ideas to transport "things." I had my first eye-opener when I was in the Army and destined for a year in Korea. MAC (Military Airlift Command)contracted civilian air liners to transport military personal all over the world. They are not singled out this way and open for enemy attack. They appear to be just another commercial (non-military) flight. They are scheduled right in with existing flights, and no one is the wiser. We had over 500 people on that plain leaving Oakland CA to Alaska, and then to Japan and then on to Seoul Korea. I will admit, when we were told WHY they used civilian air-liners, I was VERY nervous the entire flight, just thinking about an air attack! Until that moment, it never really sunk in my head "I'm a soldier!"


    When I was in Korea there was a lot of stuff flying around but it surely wasn't a commercial airline. The only "incoming" stuff was scary!
  • It's not uncommon at all for the DoD to use "stealth" ideas to transport "things." I had my first eye-opener when I was in the Army and destined for a year in Korea. MAC (Military Airlift Command)contracted civilian air liners to transport military personal all over the world. They are not singled out this way and open for enemy attack. They appear to be just another commercial (non-military) flight. They are scheduled right in with existing flights, and no one is the wiser. We had over 500 people on that plain leaving Oakland CA to Alaska, and then to Japan and then on to Seoul Korea. I will admit, when we were told WHY they used civilian air-liners, I was VERY nervous the entire flight, just thinking about an air attack! Until that moment, it never really sunk in my head "I'm a soldier!"
  • Is it just barely possible, That telling the world about secret DOD stuff being transported by RV. Is not such a good idea??????:h

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