Police aviation


Police aviation is the use of aircraft in police operations. Police services commonly use aircraft for traffic control, ground support, search and rescue, high-speed car pursuits, observation, air patrol and control of large-scale public events and/or public order incidents. They may employ rotary-wing aircraft, fixed-wing aircraft, nonrigid-wing aircraft or lighter-than-air aircraft. In some major cities, police rotary-wing aircraft are also used as air transportation for personnel belonging to police tactical units. In large, sparsely populated areas, fixed-wing aircraft are sometimes used to transport personnel and equipment.

History

The first police aviation department was established in New York City. Fixed-wing aircraft have generally been replaced by more versatile rotary-wing aircraft since the late 1940s. However, fixed-wing aircraft are still used in some missions, such as border patrol, as their higher speed and greater operating altitude allow larger areas to be covered.
In 1921, the British airship R33 was used to help the police with traffic control around horse racing events at Epsom and Ascot.
A large mural on the side of St. George's Town Hall in the East End of London depicting the 1936 Battle of Cable Street public order incident includes the police autogyro, that was present during the incident, overhead.
The first police aviation unit in China, the Wuhan Municipal Public Security Bureau Aviation Squad was established in 1993 in the Wuhan municipal public security bureau. As of 2011, China operates a total of 20 police aviation units, with 35 police helicopters and 60 pilots.

Rotary-wing aircraft

The most common form of police rotary-wing aircraft is the helicopter, but other types of rotary-wing aircraft such as autogyros are also used. The Groen Hawk 4 autogyro was used during the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Police rotary-wing aircraft are sometimes equipped to perform multiple functions, or are designed so that equipment can be changed quickly when required for divergent roles. For example, a rotary-wing aircraft could be used for search-and-rescue, and then as an air ambulance. They have also been used to perform search and rescue, notably in China after Tropical Storm Bilis.
Police forces sometimes use military surplus rotary-wing aircraft, such as the Bell UH-1 Huey. Some policing organisations, such as the Policía Federal in Mexico, acquire new military rotary-wing aircraft such as the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk. However, most buy civilian rotary-wing aircraft directly from major aircraft companies or lease them from specialty suppliers.
The use of police helicopters by the Los Angeles Police Department has been criticized for causing excessive noise and pollution and harming the well-being of community members.

Fixed-wing and nonrigid-wing aircraft

Some police air units also use fixed-wing aircraft, which allow higher and quieter surveillance, making it less likely that suspects will become aware they are being watched. A few police air units, such as the Northern Territory Police in Australia, use only fixed-wing aircraft. The use of fixed-wing aircraft also allows for longer flying times and incurs lower running costs. Fixed-wing aircraft are also used to transport prisoners, with the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System perhaps being the largest example of this use. Fixed-wing aircraft are also used to provide regular police patrols in remote communities and to transport investigators to remote crime scenes. Light-sport aircraft and powered parachutes can sometimes be used to provide a cost-effective replacement for helicopters in the observation platform role.File:Conair-Marshal.jpg|thumb|A U.S. Marshal on a "JPATS" flight used to transport prisonersThe Edgley Optica was a British fixed-wing aircraft built for observation use and was used by the Hampshire Constabulary as an alternative to rotary-wing aircraft. The Britten-Norman Defender is used by the Greater Manchester Police, the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the Garda Síochána. The FBI deployed a Britten-Norman Defender for electronic aerial surveillance at the Branch Davidian compound during the Waco siege in 1993. In Greater London, the Metropolitan Police Service has, for a number of years, reportedly been secretly using Cessna aircraft that have been fitted with surveillance equipment capable of intercepting mobile telephone calls and listening in on conversations.

Lighter-than-air aircraft

Police blimps were used to patrol the sky during the 2004 Republican National Convention, the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games and the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. The blimp Santos-Dumont, named for Alberto Santos-Dumont, operates in the Caribbean for the Special Anti-Crime Unit of Trinidad & Tobago, providing security surveillance. During April 2009, this blimp provided aerial surveillance of the 5th Summit of the Americas in Port-of-Spain. Greater Manchester Police began trial operations of a blimp in 2010 to provide surveillance for major events, which would be a cheaper alternative to the use of a helicopter in the long term. However, the blimp was only used on 18 occasions because of weather-related operational problems.

Unmanned aerial vehicles

Police in some areas have started using unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, for surveillance operations. Unmanned aerial vehicles come in both fixed-wing and rotary-wing types.

List of police aviation units

Active units

Australia
  • New South Wales Police Force Aviation Command
  • Queensland Police Service
  • South Australia Police
  • Victoria Police Air Wing
  • Western Australia Police Air Wing
File:Landeanflug EC135.jpg|right|thumb|A Eurocopter EC145 operated by the German Federal Police
;Austria
;Canada
  • Calgary Police Service - HAWCS
  • Durham Regional Police Service - Air Support Unit
  • Edmonton Police Service - Flight Operations
  • Ontario Provincial Police - Joint Air Support Unit
  • Regina Police Service - Aerial Support Unit
  • Royal Canadian Mounted Police - Air Services branch
  • Saskatoon Police Service - Air Support Unit
  • Quebec Provincial Police - Air Operations
  • Winnipeg Police Service - Flight Operations Unit
  • York Regional Police - Air Support Unit
;China
;Hong Kong
  • Hong Kong Government Flying Service
;Cyprus
  • Cyprus Police Aviation Unit
;France
  • National Gendarmerie Forces aériennes de la Gendarmerie
;Germany
;Indonesia
  • Indonesian National Police Marine and Air Corps - Air Police Directorate
;Iran
  • Iranian Police Aviation
;Ireland
  • Garda Air Support Unit
;Japan
;Malaysia
  • Royal Malaysian Police Air Wing Unit
;Mexico
File:Jornadas Policiales de Vigo, 22-28 de junio de 2012.jpg|right|thumb|An MBB Bo 105 operated by the Spanish National Police Corps
  • Mexico City Police Condor Group
;Netherlands
  • Police Aviation Service
;New Zealand
  • Eagle Helicopter Unit
;North Macedonia
  • Macedonian police helicopter unit
;Oman
  • Royal Oman Police - Police Aviation Directorate
;Panama
  • National Aeronaval Service
;Philippines
  • Philippine National Police Air Unit
;Romania
  • General Inspectorate of Aviation
;Saudi Arabia
  • General Directorate of Public Security Aviation Command
;Serbia
  • Police of Serbia Helicopter Unit
;South Africa
  • South African Police Service Air Wing
;South Korea
  • National Police Agency Aviation Division
;Taiwan
  • National Airborne Service Corps
;Uganda
  • Uganda Police Force Air Wing
;United Kingdom
  • National Police Air Service
  • Police Scotland Air Support Unit
  • Police Service of Northern Ireland Air Support Unit
;United States of America
Many local, state, and federal US law enforcement agencies operate helicopters, and some operate fixed-wing aircraft.
;Federal agencies
  • Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System Air Operations Division
  • State Department Air Wing
  • United States Fish and Wildlife Service Branch of Aviation Management
  • United States Park Police Aviation Unit
; Alabama
; Alaska
AgencyUnitRotary AssetsFixed-Wing Assets
Alaska Department of Public SafetyAircraft SectionEurocopter AS350 Squirrel
Robinson R44		Cessna 185 Skywagon
Cessna 208 Caravan
Piper PA-18 Super Cub
Beechcraft Super King Air

; Arizona
AgencyUnitRotary AssetsFixed-Wing Assets
Arizona Department of Public SafetyAviation Bureau3 Bell 429 GlobalRanger
2 Bell 407		2 King Air
Mesa Police DepartmentAir Support Unit3 MD Helicopters MD 5001 Cessna 172 Skyhawk
1 Cessna 210 Centurion
Peoria Police DepartmentAviation Unit1 Bell 505
Phoenix Police DepartmentAir Support Unit1 Agusta A109E
5 Eurocopter AS350B3 Ecureuil		1 Cessna 172 Skyhawk
1 Cessna 182 Skylane
1 Cessna 210 Centurion
1 Pilatus PC-12NG

File:MSP Trooper 3 AW139 N382MD MD1.jpg|thumb|An AgustaWestland AW139 operated by the Maryland State Police
; Arkansas
  • Arkansas State Police Air Support Unit: 1 Bell 407, 1 Cessna 206, and 1 Beechcraft B200 King Air
  • Baxter County Sheriff's Office Aviation Unit: 1 Bell OH-58
  • Benton County Sheriff's Office Aviation Unit: 2 Bell OH-58A helicopters
  • Little Rock Police Department Aviation Unit
  • Mississippi County Aviation Unit: 2 Bell OH-58A helicopters
; California
  • California Highway Patrol Office of Air Operations
  • LAPD Air Support Division
  • Los Angeles County Sheriff's Aero Bureau
; Colorado
; Connecticut
  • New Milford Police Aviation Unit
; Delaware
  • Delaware State Police Aviation Section
; District of Columbia
; Florida
; Georgia
; Hawaii
; Idaho
  • Kootenai County Sheriff's Office Regional Air Support
; Illinois
; Indiana
; Iowa
; Kansas
  • Kansas Highway Patrol Troop T - Aircraft: 1 Bell 407 helicopter, 1 Airbus H125 helicopter, 1 Cessna 182 RG fixed-wing aircraft, 3 Cessna 206 fixed-wing aircraft, and a 2001 King Air 350 for Executive transport for state officials
; Maine
  • Maine State Police Air Wing - 2 Cessna 183 fixed-wing aircraft
  • Maine Forest Service Forest Protection Aviation Branch - 2 Bell 407 helicopters, 5 UH-1H helicopters, and 3 fixed-wing aircraft
  • Maine Marine Patrol - 1 Kodiak 100 fixed-wing aircraft
  • Maine Warden Service Aviation Division - 3 fixed-wing aircraft
; Maryland
; Massachusetts
  • Massachusetts State Police Air Wing
; Nebraska
; Nevada
; New Hampshire
; New Jersey
; New York
; North Carolina
; North Dakota
; Ohio
File:Ohio State Highway Patrol Cessna 182.jpg|thumb|A Cessna 182 Skylane operated by the Ohio State Highway Patrol
; Oklahoma
; Oregon
  • Oregon State Police Aviation Unit - four fixed-wing Cessnas
  • Clackamas County Sheriff Air Support Unit - one Cessna 182
  • Portland Police Air Support Unit
; Pennsylvania
; Puerto Rico
; South Dakota
; Texas
; Utah
; Virginia
; Washington
; West Virginia
; Wisconsin
;Vietnam