Detained immigrants are at risk on ICE Air’s charters, which face minimal regulation by aviation watchdog agencies. By Angelika Albaladejo for Capital & Main This article was produced in partnership with USA Today. As a private jet hired by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to transport immigrant detainees landed in Louisiana, heavy smoke filled the cabin. It became increasingly hard for the 168 passengers—guards, officers, crew, and undocumented immigrants—to breathe. Some yelled for help as they choked on toxic fumes for eight minutes. But the pilot stuck to normal procedures, taxiing down the airport runway, and parking, as usual, in front of the Alexandria detention center. By the time they escaped the aircraft, many were dizzy; Some were vomiting and required medical attention. Barely a year later, that same quarter-century-old jet caught fire during a crash landing and left shackled passengers struggling to escape as flight attendants discovered that one of the emergency slides didn’t work. Read more