National Prisoner Transportation System

On August 20, 1985, the U.S. Marshals Service acquired its first Boeing 727 used for prisoner transportation. The Marshals Service operated the National Prisoner Transportation System, one of the largest transporters of prisoners in the world.

In 1995, the air fleets of the Marshals Service and the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) merged to create the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System (JPATS). The merger created a more efficient and effective system for transporting prisoners and criminal aliens. Operated by the Marshals Service, Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System is one of the largest transporters of prisoners in the world - handling hundreds of requests every day to move prisoners between judicial districts, correctional institutions and foreign countries.