Operations Support Division- Aviation Unit
• The Aviation Unit is comprised of a program manager, team leader and 13 pilots.
• The department has Federal Aviation Administration approval to fly small, battery-operated, remotely-controlled helicopters.
• Primary uses include helping find missing persons, assist commanders with intelligence from active scenes, clear major traffic crashes, assess damage in the event of natural disasters, and assist with crime scene investigation.
The Aviation Unit is utilized to support patrol and investigative units in the field. Arlington PD was one of the first organizations given authorization by the FAA to operate small unmanned aerial systems( sUAS) within the national airspace, in 2012. Since then, the department has established specific procedures for when and how unmanned helicopters can be used. Upon request from the field, all flights are pre-approved by the program manager, or team leader. The department is bound by laws governing citizens ' privacy, and must operate only within a defined incident perimeter.
Arlington PD is routinely consulted as a subject matter expert on these topics and sUAS systems. Arlington PD was sought to publish an article in a popular law enforcement periodical about how to start and manage a sUAS program.
In the summer of 2016, the FAA changed regulations for Arlington PD, making it easier for the organization to expand its pilot cadre. In late 2016, the Aviation Unit hosted a flight school and added nine new pilots to the program bringing the total personnel to 13 pilots. The additional capacity provides more departmental flexibility in quickly responding to emerging threats. The pilots are collateral duty pilots. They come from many segments within the department including patrol, SWAT, detectives, and traffic units.
Deployments in 2016 consisted of assisting with suspect searches, missing persons, and documenting crime scenes.
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Annual Report 2016