By land, sea, or air, the Sinaloa Cartel has, over the years, developed methods to traffic large quantities of drugs to countries around the world, becoming a transnational criminal organization.
One of the methods most closely identified by authorities is the use of a squadron of aviation pilots who have helped build the cartel’s criminal network.
These are not simply cartel members, but professional pilots, including individuals who once aspired to become Formula 1 drivers, who instead chose a criminal path.
The topic of the Sinaloa Cartel’s pilots resurfaced after Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office (FGR) revealed that it once had in custody the man who flew Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada to the United States but later transferred him to U.S. authorities.
Below are some of the pilots who have been linked over the years to the Sinaloa Cartel.
Alejandro Flores Cacho, Leader of the Sinaloa Cartel’s Narco-Pilots
On May 5, authorities announced the arrest of Diana Toro Díaz, the wife of alleged cartel figure Alejandro Flores Cacho, who has been identified as the leader of a group of pilots working for the Sinaloa Cartel.
Flores Cacho is a professional pilot accused of coordinating a multinational drug transportation network alongside Sinaloa Cartel founders Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán since 2010, according to the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
He was born on March 26, 1963, in the State of Mexico, although the specific municipality is unknown, according to his CURP registration.
On October 13 of that year, the United States designated him as a foreign narcotics trafficker and sanctioned 12 entities and 16 members of his financial and drug trafficking organization operating in Mexico and Colombia.
According to the investigative outlet InSight Crime, Flores Cacho entered drug trafficking with the assistance of two Mexican pilots: Jorge Gustavo Kessler and Ricardo García Sánchez.
By early 2002, he had established an aerial drug trafficking network operating in Mexico, Venezuela, and eight U.S. states. The organization coordinated the delivery and distribution of drugs by air and sea from South America into Mexico and later into the United States, according to OFAC.
Investigations by MILENIO indicate that Flores Cacho relied on:
- Mantenimiento, Aeronáutica, Transporte y Servicios Aéreos S.A. de C.V., an aircraft maintenance and hangar company located in Toluca, State of Mexico.
- Capacitación Aeronáutica Profesional S.C., a flight school in Cuernavaca, Morelos, allegedly used to train pilots involved in drug trafficking.
- Aero Express Intercontinental S.A. de C.V., an air cargo company based in Mexico City.
According to U.S. authorities, Flores Cacho used his cargo aviation companies and financial shell companies to transport drugs and launder money on behalf of the Sinaloa Cartel.
His financial network allegedly included his wife, Diana Lorena Toro Díaz, who was arrested in mid-2026 at Montréal–Trudeau Airport while attempting to enter Canada using a false identity. His brother, Javier Flores Cacho, was also identified as part of the network.
El Jando: The Dream That Never Came True
Another well-known pilot linked to the Sinaloa Cartel is Mauro Alberto Núñez, known as El Jando, a trusted pilot for Iván Archivaldo Guzmán who allegedly participated in the kidnapping and transfer of El Mayo Zambada to the United States.
El Jando was primarily responsible for domestic and international drug trafficking by air. At age 20, he joined the Sinaloa Cartel under the guidance of a criminal leader known as El 300, who taught him to fly drug shipments from Sinaloa to Chiapas.
An investigation by journalist Óscar Balderas for MILENIO revealed that El Jando, also known as Jandito, Janito, or Jano, once dreamed of becoming a Formula 1 driver but instead applied his skills to criminal aviation. He became known for flying at low altitude, handling heavy cargo, and executing difficult landings.
Between 2015 and 2018, El Jando reportedly transported up to 600 kilograms of cocaine and half a ton of weapons. However, the most significant mission assigned to him by Los Chapitos was supervising the transfer of El Mayo Zambada to the United States.
According to reports from Sinaloa, El Jando played an important role in the operation and allegedly knew every detail of the supposed arrangement between Los Chapitos and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
“There is still no certainty whether El Jando was the pilot who flew El Mayo to the United States or whether he planned the flight route for an American pilot. What is clear is that he was a key figure in the operation and possesses information that Mexican authorities have sought since last year and that the United States has not disclosed,” the investigation states.
Following the operation, El Jando became one of Los Chapitos’ most valuable members. However, he was later captured, reportedly with information provided by La Perris, with whom he is believed to have participated in the Culiacan conflicts of 2019 and 2023.
He is currently detained in the United States after being among more than 100 cartel figures transferred by the Mexican government to U.S. authorities.
El Chuky Also Took to the Skies
In September 2025, Juan Pablo “N,” known as El Chuky, was arrested in Badiraguato, Sinaloa, during a federal security operation. Authorities identified him as a pilot working for Los Chapitos, a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel.
The 26-year-old pilot was under investigation for alleged involvement in organized crime related to arms trafficking.
Authorities reported that he was wanted under an arrest warrant for organized crime offenses involving firearms trafficking.
Juan Pablo “N” was captured in the town of Surutato, Badiraguato, Sinaloa.
El Tololoche: The Pilot Who Testified Against El Chapo
In November 2018, during the trial of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, prosecutors called Miguel Ángel Martínez Martínez, known as El Tololoche, as a witness.
A licensed pilot in Texas, El Tololoche worked for El Chapo for 12 years.
According to an investigation by journalist Rubi Martínez for MILENIO, he served the Sinaloa Cartel between 1986 and 1998.
In addition to flying aircraft, he acted as a liaison between Colombian cartels and the Mexican criminal organization.
El Tololoche admitted in court that he was responsible for receiving drug shipments in South America for transport to the United States, although he stated he was not the only pilot involved. During his testimony, he said the Sinaloa Cartel operated at least ten aircraft per month.
Originally from Guanajuato, El Tololoche has faced multiple death threats and assassination attempts after agreeing to testify against El Chapo, who is currently serving a life sentence at the ADX Florence federal prison in Colorado.
Source: milenio
