HISTORY

The Huntington Beach Police Aero Unit was formed in 1968. We were the first city in Orange County and the fifth in the entire nation to utilize helicopters in support of public safety. Since it's inception the Unit has amassed over 92,000 hours of flight time for the City of Huntington Beach. The Hangar Facility, currently in use by the Aero Unit, was opened in 1986. It was named the Bob Morrison Heliport in honor of the founder and original unit commander Lt. Bob Morrison, who has since retired. The Aero Unit consists of six pilot/observers and is led by Sgt. Tom Arnold.

We operate three MD 520N series turbine powered helicopters out of our facility. It is owned and operated solely by the city of Huntington Beach expressly for police and fire operations. Landings and departures from this site are limited to our aircraft but may be used by other public safety aircraft in an emergency. The facility is self sufficient with underground fuel storage and complete maintenance capabilities.

The Aero Unit is made up of six police officer /pilots, one police sergeant/pilot, two mechanics, one part-time secretary and one part time student worker. Three of the pilots are Certified Flight Instructors, which allow us to conduct all of our own training. This saves the city tens of thousands of dollars each year and increases operational safety. Our training program is very intense due to the type of flying we do as police pilots.

FIRST ON SCENE

The greatest benefit of helicopter patrol is the quick response time to emergencies. Our helicopter is capable of speeds up to 175mph, which puts us first on the scene of a crime or emergency about 97% of the time. Once the helicopter has arrived at the scene, suspects usually cease their activity because of their immediate desire to hide or escape. However, there is no escape from the Huntington Beach helicopter.

The highly trained observers may be able to spot illegal activity from up to a mile away by utilizing stabilized binoculars or other specialized equipment. The ability to scan large areas increases the chances of halting crime and of apprehending suspects.

All of the pilots and observers are sworn police officers before their assignment to the Aero Unit. They have excellent knowledge of the geographical layout of the city and are aware of high crime areas. While on patrol they are on constant look out for criminal activity including traffic violations and drunk drivers. Helicopter crews issued 412 traffic citations in 2002. This is accomplished by calling a ground unit to stop a violator and issue the citation.

The warning to would be lawbreakers; "This City Patrolled by Aircraft" is no joke. In 2002, along with the 412 traffic citations issued, aircrews were responsible for 277 felony and 458 misdemeanor arrests. In addition, crews observed 987 incidents of suspicious activity or actual criminal violations that ground units were unable to respond to. Since the creation of the Huntington Beach Aero Unit, we have issued 13,660 cites and made over 15,208 arrests as well has handling 145,552 calls for service.

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT

Our helicopters are equipped with "state of the art" communication equipment. We are able to talk to any police, fire, or public safety agency with our radios, increasing our effectiveness.

The helicopters we operate are equipped with "Night Sun" spotlights that produce 50 million candle power. The lights can illuminate large, football field size areas or may be focused to concentrate on an area a few feet in diameter.

We also utilize "FLIR", Forward Looking Infrared. This equipment detects heat and gives the observer an image on a small monitor that lets him see in total darkness. The images are remarkably clear. It can even show where a car was parked moments before, even though the car has left.

The FLIR is of great assistance in searching for criminal activity but it is also used to locate injured people on the beach or in the water at night. We have used it to locate boats in distress and even to detect fuel spills in the marina.

With the FLIR, we can scan school yards, check business roof tops, spot suspicious vehicles in neighborhoods, and pick out suspects hiding just about anywhere. One example of was the apprehension of a suspect who had been hiding under a trash can. His body heat warmed the trash container and he was picked out from all the yards being searched, even though he was not visible to officers conducting the search. Also on board is Westcam stabilized color camera with 14X magnification and recording capabilities.

UNITS CANCELED

With the helicopter's special equipment and experienced flight crews, the air unit can search an area for suspects in minutes. The same area without air assistance might take ground officers hours to fully search. The helicopter also responds to calls such as traffic jams, speeding cars, suspicious persons or vehicles and other minor incidents. If the problem is gone, ground units can be canceled to handle other, more important calls that may be waiting.

During the calendar year 2002, the Aero Unit handled over 6,537 calls for service and is credit with 735 arrests. More importantly the Aero Unit was able to handle 913 calls where it was determined no ground unit was needed and officers were cleared to handle other calls.

MAJOR INCIDENTS

The helicopter responds to all major incidents. Whether a vehicle pursuit, a robbery in progress, a major traffic collision, a structure fire, or a boat in distress, the aircrew's job is to assist ground personnel and watchout for everyone's safety.

With the unique ability to see all sides of a situation at once, the helicopter can report to ground units any dangers that may await them around a corner.

The helicopter crews can direct the appropriate response to citizens or other officers who need help. They can set up containment perimeters, do aerial surveillance for fires, assist in criminal or narcotics investigations, respond to water rescues and assist with firefighters with water dropping buckets.

TRAINING AND PATROL

The pilots who fly our helicopter train constantly to be as proficient and safe as possible. Pilots train with SWAT, Firefighters, and Marine Safety personnel to be prepared for any emergency. By FAA regulation, pilots receive intense examination and flight reviews to check their proficiency. Each pilot is a licensed Commercial Pilot and an experienced police officer. In addition three of our pilots or FAA licensed Certified Flight Instructors.

Our aircraft patrol during daylight hours at or above 700 feet. During night patrol we increase our altitude to 800 feet or more. This gives us the best visibility while reducing noise. We may fly lower if an emergency situation requires and have even landed to assist citizens or officers on the ground.

In 1984 we began using the MD500E model helicopter for patrol, it was equipped with the "Quiet Knight" package, a four bladed tail rotor (tail rotors make the majority of the helicopter noise). In 1992 we put our first NOTAR (No-Tailrotor) in service, and the second NOTAR in 1998. These helicopters are the latest technology and were designed to be 30% quieter than tail rotor models. We became an all "NOTAR" fleet 1n 2002 with the addition of our third NOTAR helicopter. NOISE, is usually our only complaint, except by the criminals we catch, and we are sensitive to that concern. We will try to keep the noise down and are sorry for any inconvenience.