🚨 Drones as First Responders (DFR)
Newsletter #4
Drones, or unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), once exclusive to special ops, are now crucial in law enforcement. They provide real-time visual information, allowing officers to respond more effectively and safely. Chula Vista Police Department's (CVPD) successful use of drones as first responders (DFR) demonstrates the immense benefits, from faster response times to improved situational awareness. Drones offer cost-effective aerial support, enhance crowd control, and aid in evidence collection. As more departments adopt DFR programs, the future of public safety is set to transform significantly.
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🛸 Drones as First Responders
Drones aren't just for special ops anymore.
Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), once the exclusive tools of special operations, are now becoming indispensable in law enforcement operations. Imagine a typical day of patrol operations in any city or municipality across the country. Traditionally, this involves officers patrolling their beats and responding to calls for service as they occur. This often requires traveling to the incident location with urgency and navigating congestion and traffic. Even in the best-case scenarios, arrival on the scene is delayed, and in emergencies, every second counts.
What if officers and dispatchers could have real-time visual information before arriving at the scene? The value of such situational awareness is immense. Officers could adapt their response based on real-time data, potentially avoiding hazardous situations and better preparing for the tasks ahead. Sharing this real-time view with dispatchers, incident commanders, and specialized support teams, such as de-escalation experts or medically trained staff, would undoubtedly improve response efficiency and outcomes for all parties involved.
Drones equipped with powerful onboard cameras can stream live video feeds back to Real-Time Crime Centers (RTCCs). Operators at these centers control the drones remotely and communicate with field units, providing them with critical information and tactical intelligence. This video feed is also accessible on the devices of first responders, supervisors, and command staff, ensuring they have the same real-time situational awareness as the drone operators.
The Proven Success of Drones as First Responders (DFR)
The effectiveness of Drones as First Responders (DFR) programs has been well documented. A leading example is the Chula Vista Police Department (CVPD) in Southern California. Close to the Mexican border, this small police department has flown over twenty thousand DFR missions since launching their drone program in 2018. CVPD has become a model for law enforcement agencies nationwide, demonstrating the significant benefits of drone integration in patrol operations.
CVPD has the ability to launch drones from their rooftop and fly them beyond the line of sight, with an FAA approval. This capability allows CVPD to get eyes on the scene quickly, anywhere in their jurisdiction, providing officers with detailed descriptions of suspects and their behaviors. It also helps verify witness accounts, which can sometimes be inaccurate. For instance, in one case, a witness reported seeing a gun, which was later confirmed by the drone operator to be a lighter. This has tremendously improved their ability to de-escalate situations.
The use of drones in police operations isn't just a theoretical improvement; it's a practical one with real-world successes. The ability to stream live video feeds and provide real-time updates to officers and command staff means more informed decision-making and safer outcomes for both officers and the public.
Drones offer several additional benefits that further enhance the effectiveness of Drones as First Responders (DFR) programs. One major advantage is cost-effectiveness. Drones are often more economical than traditional aerial support such as helicopters, requiring less maintenance, fuel, and operational personnel, making them a sustainable long-term option. Their rapid deployment capabilities mean drones can be quickly dispatched from strategic locations like rooftops or mobile units, allowing for immediate response to unfolding incidents. Beyond law enforcement, drones can also assist in environmental monitoring, providing crucial information during chemical spills, fires, or natural disasters to police and other emergency services.
In large public gatherings, drones enhance crowd control and public safety by monitoring for safety concerns and efficiently managing and directing people to prevent accidents or respond swiftly to emergencies. They also play a vital role in evidence collection and documentation, offering high-resolution imagery and video that can be invaluable for investigating crime scenes or accidents and providing robust evidence for legal proceedings. Furthermore, drones can be utilized in training scenarios, offering real-time feedback and allowing officers to practice responding to various incidents, thereby improving preparedness and tactical skills.
Drones facilitate better interagency collaboration between different emergency response units, such as fire departments, medical services, and search and rescue teams, by providing a unified view of the situation. In disaster response, drones can quickly assess damage, locate survivors, and deliver essential supplies, greatly enhancing the effectiveness of rescue operations. By incorporating these benefits, DFR programs can revolutionize how law enforcement and emergency services operate, significantly improving public safety and community well-being.
As more police departments adopt DFR programs, the benefits will continue to compound. Drones are proving to be a game-changer in law enforcement, enhancing the capability of police to serve and protect their communities more effectively. A future where drones play a central role in public safety operations across the nation is not very far away.
🚁 Ghetto Birds are just Meh
Law enforcement has long relied on manned aircraft for aerial support. Manned aerial support is often used exclusively for critical incidents for reasons including cost, crew limitations, lengthy travel time to an incident, and competing priorities. For decades these limitations have framed the way public safety views aerial support, and they drive officer behavior.
We need to challenge ourselves and our leaders to think differently. If our experiences show that traditional air support is useful for, and will respond to situations meeting certain criteria, then we’re not going to consider the value they could add to the other 90% of the work we handle. For example, an officer is dispatched to a report of someone checking cars for unlocked doors. The officer recognizes that a helicopter might be useful in locating the suspect, but knowing their ETA is 25 minutes and the direction of travel for the suspect is unknown, the officer doesn’t bother to ask. Consider the same situation but the helicopter happens to be a few minutes away. The crew hears the incident being dispatched and is overhead before responding ground units arrive. Since air support arrives to the area so quickly, their search radius is small and they are able to direct ground units to the suspect’s location. With manned air support, these situations are the luck of the draw, however with DFR programs this is a common outcome.
There is no question that DFR programs can alleviate some challenges associated with traditional air support and gain new value. Here are some of the innovative technologies and approaches to consider for DFR programs.
Drones equipped with thermal imaging and night vision cameras can operate effectively in low-light conditions, aiding in the location of suspects or missing persons during nighttime or in dense foliage. Implementing AI to analyze video feeds and automate flight paths can enhance efficiency and reduce human error, with AI detecting unusual activities or objects and alerting officers to potential threats or important developments. Many manufacturers are already marketing this technology.
Tethered drones eliminate the limitations of battery-powered drones, offering significant utility despite a limited travel range. These drones are particularly useful for large gatherings such as fairs, parades, and concerts. Additionally, drones can be integrated with other emerging technologies, like facial recognition and license plate recognition systems, to provide comprehensive situational awareness and assist in suspect identification and vehicle tracking.
The use of a coordinated fleet of drones allows for coverage of larger areas, ensuring no part of an incident scene is missed. This multi-drone coordination is especially beneficial in large-scale events or disasters. Furthermore, drones can improve community relations by live-streaming public events, town hall meetings, or police activities, ensuring transparency and building trust with the community.
Although DFR programs can add a lot of value to an agency’s operations, there are some challenges to consider. For urban areas, piloting a drone from a fixed location often works well. But for agencies covering a large area or rural and even suburban areas, piloting from a fixed location might be limiting. Approaches to this challenge are equipping more personnel with drones, designating roving personnel that can respond wherever needed to deploy a drone similar to how K9 units are used, or identifying multiple fixed locations to maximize the value of the DFR program. The best approach for each agency will depend on many factors but undoubtedly can be decided by analyzing data they already have to determine where and when a DFR program can improve outcomes and ultimately the service the agency provides.
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