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Yeah the price differential isn't high enough to justify narco smuggler like loss rates. On the other hand, take a look at the price difference of cigarettes b

Yeah the price differential isn't high enough to justify narco smuggler like loss rates. On the other hand, take a look at the price difference of cigarettes between Australia and Indonesia, like 20x. There must be a pretty insane volume of smuggling going on between those countries seperate by a short straight of Ocean, it would support narco submarine levels of sophistication.

codyb 1y ago
I don't know if this is true. A pack of cigarettes in Virginia costs... what 4 bucks? 5? Those Virginia taxed cigarettes are sold in NYC for 10 bucks a pack now or 1 dollar a loosey (a... friend told me). That's 2x on packs and 4x on looseys. That gives you a pretty healthy margin before busts could impact your profits. Presumably you're also buying them in bulk in Virginia for cheaper than the 4 or 5 dollar store price too. Cigarettes are probably a nickel a piece coming off the line?
- avn2109 1y ago
  A nickel!?? Good heavens probably the whole pack full doesn't even cost a nickel to manufacture. Manufacturing cost per cigarette must surely be waaay under a penny. Disregarding marketing and distribution expenses of course.
fy20 1y ago
In Lithuania it's around €5 per pack, and in Belarus around €2. If you assume 20kg is 800 packs, then you are talking a few thousand profit per shipment. Minimum wage, after tax, in Lithuania is €700.
LorenPechtel 1y ago
Balloons rely on the wind, you could only do this where prevailing winds almost certainly put your balloon into some place you can retrieve it.
ashanoko 1y ago
Tabacco is nicotin juices and leaf cellulose dried. Could you extract the juices and then apply that concentrate to something similar at target location like hay?
- quickthrowman 1y ago
  You can already buy concentrated liquid nicotine, it’s called e-liquid or vape juice. All you need is a heating element, no organic material required. 48mg/ml!
- DonHopkins 1y ago
  You could dip blotter paper with colorful artwork in pure nicotine, and consume them like LSD. They'd also be easy to send through the normal post!
ifwinterco 1y ago
I don't know if it involves narco submarines but these is indeed a huge problem with smuggled cigarettes in Australia due to the extremely high tax making it very much worth the while of organised criminal gangs
rstuart4133 1y ago
There is an insane amount of smuggling of cigarettes going on in Australia. Currently about 50% of consumption, and rising. It's causing USA prohibition like effects. With criminal gangs distributing in charge of distribution, protection rackets are now common place. [0] Literally hundreds of tobacco shops burnt to the ground this year. So many that TV regularly features tobacco shop arsonists caught on CCTV spilling accelerant on their clothes, and setting fire to themselves. The build up of money is letting expanding their criminal enterprises into other areas, so we are seeing a corresponding rise in car crime, importation of guns, and smuggling in other areas, and some inventive stuff like using private ATM's for money laundering. The government is now trying a law enforcement push get control of it. But of course they were doing that before, so I presume more of the same will fail. [0] https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08-04/illegal-tobacco-is-a-deadly-10-billion-industry/105607186 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08-04/illegal-tobacco-is-a-...

codyb 1y ago

I don't know if this is true. A pack of cigarettes in Virginia costs... what 4 bucks? 5? Those Virginia taxed cigarettes are sold in NYC for 10 bucks a pack now or 1 dollar a loosey (a... friend told me). That's 2x on packs and 4x on looseys. That gives you a pretty healthy margin before busts could impact your profits. Presumably you're also buying them in bulk in Virginia for cheaper than the 4 or 5 dollar store price too. Cigarettes are probably a nickel a piece coming off the line?

avn2109 1y ago
A nickel!?? Good heavens probably the whole pack full doesn't even cost a nickel to manufacture. Manufacturing cost per cigarette must surely be waaay under a penny. Disregarding marketing and distribution expenses of course.

fy20 1y ago

In Lithuania it's around €5 per pack, and in Belarus around €2. If you assume 20kg is 800 packs, then you are talking a few thousand profit per shipment. Minimum wage, after tax, in Lithuania is €700.

LorenPechtel 1y ago

Balloons rely on the wind, you could only do this where prevailing winds almost certainly put your balloon into some place you can retrieve it.

ashanoko 1y ago

Tabacco is nicotin juices and leaf cellulose dried. Could you extract the juices and then apply that concentrate to something similar at target location like hay?

quickthrowman 1y ago
You can already buy concentrated liquid nicotine, it’s called e-liquid or vape juice. All you need is a heating element, no organic material required. 48mg/ml!
DonHopkins 1y ago
You could dip blotter paper with colorful artwork in pure nicotine, and consume them like LSD. They'd also be easy to send through the normal post!

ifwinterco 1y ago

I don't know if it involves narco submarines but these is indeed a huge problem with smuggled cigarettes in Australia due to the extremely high tax making it very much worth the while of organised criminal gangs

rstuart4133 1y ago

There is an insane amount of smuggling of cigarettes going on in Australia. Currently about 50% of consumption, and rising. It's causing USA prohibition like effects. With criminal gangs distributing in charge of distribution, protection rackets are now common place. [0] Literally hundreds of tobacco shops burnt to the ground this year. So many that TV regularly features tobacco shop arsonists caught on CCTV spilling accelerant on their clothes, and setting fire to themselves. The build up of money is letting expanding their criminal enterprises into other areas, so we are seeing a corresponding rise in car crime, importation of guns, and smuggling in other areas, and some inventive stuff like using private ATM's for money laundering. The government is now trying a law enforcement push get control of it. But of course they were doing that before, so I presume more of the same will fail. [0] https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08-04/illegal-tobacco-is-a-deadly-10-billion-industry/105607186 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08-04/illegal-tobacco-is-a-...