7-Mar-2013Source: Power Sonix
Power Sonix, Inc. has been awarded a long-term contract with Korean Aerospace Industries of South Korea (KAI) to supply 900-watt PSAIR32A tactical public address systems for the Surion helicopters being made for the Korean National Police Agency program. The Surion helicopter is being designed, engineered and manufactured in South Korea by KAI in partnership with... Read more
7-Mar-2013Source: Power Sonix
Power Sonix, Inc. announces at HELI-EXPO in Las Vegas the release and availability of new aeodynamic speaker arrays for their industry-leading airborne public address systems. The new wing-shaped hexagon speaker enclosures offer a 30-40% reduction in the surface area of the speaker driver enclosures from their previous models. With these improvements, the new externally mounted... Read more
7-Mar-2013Source: AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, and Mitsui Bussan Aerospace are pleased to announce they have been awarded a contract by the Japan National Police Agency (JNPA) to supply two AW139 twin engine helicopters which will be operated in Hokkaido and Fukushima prefectures. This latest order brings the number of AW139 helicopters ordered by customers in Japan... Read more
7-Mar-2013Source: AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, and Kanematsu Corporation are pleased to announce they have been awarded a contract by the Japan National Police Agency (JNPA) to supply a GrandNew law enforcement light twin helicopter which will be operated in Kawagawa prefecture located in the southern Kantō region of Japan. The order brings to three the number... Read more
7-Mar-2013Source: MD Helicopters
MD Helicopters Inc. (MDHI), a Lynn Tilton company and leading manufacturer of commercial, air-rescue, military and law enforcement helicopters, announced a new order for a MD 500E helicopter from the Polk County Florida Sheriff’s Office (PCSO). The new MD 500E is the first order in a program to replace an aging fleet of three military surplus OH58’s. “We are... Read more
6-Mar-2013Source: American Eurocopter
American Eurocopter continues to lead the U.S. airborne law enforcement market, maintaining a 55 percent market share over the last decade with a product line that has become the industry standard. With 280 Eurocopter aircraft operating in federal, state and local law enforcement units, operators cite reliability, versatility and cost effectiveness as key factors in... Read more
28-Feb-2013Source: Frederick News Post
Years after a multimillion-dollar contract to replace the state’s fleet of aged medevac helicopters caused controversy in Annapolis, two newly purchased aircraft arrived Tuesday at the aviation command of the Maryland State Police (see full story)... Read more
26-Feb-2013Source: The Raw Story
Officials in Texas announced on Thursday that State Troopers would no longer be allowed to open fire on suspects from helicopters after the recent killing of two immigrants (see full story)... Read more
25-Feb-2013Source: Bell
Four weeks ago, HeliHub.com ran two stories on Bell 429s being delivered into Nigeria Jan 23 –Nigerian Police receive a Bell 429 Jan 24 –First EMS Bell 429 arrives in Nigeria for NEMA And then on Friday February 22nd, Bell issued the following:- Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. company (NYSE: TXT), announced today the delivery... Read more
22-Feb-2013Source: Wired
Alameda County, just east of San Francisco, is closing in on becoming one of dozens of local law enforcement agencies nationwide to deploy the unmanned crafts. (see full story)... Read more
20-Feb-2013Source: Heli Aviation
[electronic translation] The police chief and the head of the provincial police force flying Liaoningun inspected with a delegation from the Heli Aviation TRAINING ACADEMY in Augsburg. Impressed by our forward-looking, equipped with state of the art technology flight school, training and expertise of the entire fleet of Heli Aviation teams audited executives the TRAINING... Read more
19-Feb-2013Source: HeliHub.com
Sources in Nigeria are saying that the Osun State Government has commenced a lease with OAS Helicopters for a Eurocopter AS355N – the one we reported here that they had recently bought from Sky Helicopters in Spain. In a statement, the state governor’s media aide, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, said the helicopter is to support its... Read more
17-Feb-2013Source: HeliHub.com
The Belgian based website helispot.be has recently launched a new page, featuring the helicopter traffic which flies each day. For every tracked helicopter that flies in Belgium and Netherlands, you can see the first and last recorded track times each day [in UTC], along with the registration, type , serial number, operator, pressure altitude and... Read more
15-Feb-2013Source: Barista Net
Bloomfield Township Administrator Ted Ehrenburg reported that state officials had agreed to hold off on including a helipad as part of the construction of new State Police barracks on the Garden State Parkway. (see full story)... Read more
14-Feb-2013Source: RSG AeroDesign
RSG has successfully completed the design, manufacture and integration of advanced mission equipment package for the Fukui prefecture Police Department’s newly acquired EC-135 helicopter. The modular mission equipment design included dual, multi-spectral, electro-optical systems, a microwave digital data link system, stabilized high intensity search light system, and high powered external PA equipment. The Fukui PD... Read more
12-Feb-2013Source: HeliHub.com
Mayor Mike McGlinn issued the following brief statement “Today I spoke with Seattle Police Chief John Diaz and we agreed that it was time to end the unmanned aerial vehicle program, so that SPD can focus its resources on public safety and the community building work that is the department’s priority. The vehicles will be... Read more
6-Feb-2013
DeSoto County Sheriff is buying a 1976-build Bell Jet Ranger helicopter from the Georgia State Highway Patrol (see full story) File photo... Read more
6-Feb-2013Source: CBC
According to police, AIR1 responded to 3,445 incidents in 2012, resulting in 185 arrests by ground patrol units. (see full story)... Read more
4-Feb-2013Source: SkyTrac
During the recent presidential campaign, local law enforcement agencies and other departments needed to be aware of the temporary flight restrictions (TFRs) in place to accommodate the presidential candidates’ movements across the country. LA County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) made extensive use of SkyWeb, SkyTrac’s asset management program to ensure aircraft avoided TFRs, and to identify... Read more
3-Feb-2013Source: Topeka Capital-Journal
Kansas Supreme Court upholds the decision of a lower court to invalidate a 2008 contract for Topeka Police to buy an R44 after the down payment of $74,000 had been paid. (see full story here – and the documentation from the court here)... Read more
1-Feb-2013Source: Eurocopter
Eurocopter Japan delivered a brand new EC135 T2 to the National Police Agency (NPA) on 30 January 2013. It will be the first EC135 to be deployed to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) for law enforcement missions in the Tokyo prefecture. The NPA and its police departments across Japan currently owns a fleet of 28... Read more
28-Jan-2013Source: National Post
“It’s starting to catch on more and more. Eventually, I think you’ll see (unmanned aerial vehicles) in almost all the provinces,” said RCMP Staff Sgt. Dave Domoney (see full story)... Read more
27-Jan-2013
A letter sent from the Texas Department of Public Safety to the state Attorney General on Wednesday confirms that the FBI is investigating a state trooper’s fatal shooting which lead to the death of two Guatemalan immigrants. (see full story) This is an update to a story we first ran on 1st January – Texas... Read more
25-Jan-2013Source: Orange County Sheriff
We are currently in a test phase of this Unmanned Aerial Surveillance (UAS) platform and will not be using this UAS until we have appropriate permissions and have implemented training and guidelines. The OCSO has no intention of using this technology to spy on the citizens of Orange County, but to have it as a... Read more
23-Jan-2013Source: IMT
Integrated Microwave Technologies, LLC (IMT), a Business Unit within the Vitec Group’s Videocom Division, and a leader in advanced digital microwave systems for the MAG (Military, Aerospace & Government) markets, has been awarded a Technical Investigative Surveillance (TechOps) contract by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). TechOps Government-Wide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs), presented by the... Read more
23-Jan-2013Source: HeliHub.com
The first Bell 429 arrived in Nigeria last Thursday, marked up in the colours of the Nigerian Police. Still lacking blades, boom and with plenty of packaging still in place, the helicopter was photographed out in the open at Lagos Airport pending a short land trip to the Police hangar read for preparation and test... Read more
22-Jan-2013Source: 3AW
Metro Trains Melbourne has started using a helicopter with infrared cameras in an attempt to reduce theft of copper – which has led to significant cancellation and delays to rail services (see full story)... Read more
16-Jan-2013Source: HeliHub.com
Bolivian Government Minister Carlos Romero is reported in local press as announcing that the the national law enforcement agency “Policía Boliviana” will receive two Robinson R44s later this month. Due to the altitudes involved in Bolivia, the pair will not be able to fly around the capital La Paz, which lies between 10,650 and 13,250... Read more
15-Jan-2013Source: HeliHub.com
The Peruvian Ministry of the Interior have ordered four Eurocopter EC145s from local distributor Eurocopter Cono Sur (located in Chile). Contract value is 93,718,765 Nuevo Sol (approx $36.8M), and the contract requires all four to be delivered by 20th December 2013. The helicopters will be used to provide a range of law enforcement roles in... Read more
9-Jan-2013Source: Monroe News
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office has added a second military helicopter to its aviation unit – a no-cost aircraft from the Kansas City Police Department (see full story) File photo... Read more
7-Jan-2013Source: West Midlands Police
MORE than 500 people were arrested in 2012 – who would otherwise have got away had it not been for the West Midlands Police helicopter. The helicopter, known to officers on the street by its call sign ‘Alpha Oscar 1’, has taken off 1,362 times this year and has been involved in 3,698 incidents. Using a... Read more
7-Jan-2013Source: www.flyatnight.info
Night flights are challenging. Visual information about the flight environment is greatly reduced as compared to daytime flying and is largely dependent on the amount of celestial illumination encountered throughout the flight. It is therefore of significant importance for the night pilot to know exactly when darkness falls, and if some level of illumination in... Read more
7-Jan-2013Source: Becker Avionics
Becker Avionics announced today that Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in California, selected the Becker DVCS6100 digital airborne audio control panel system to upgrade their four Eurocopter AS350 multi-mission helicopters and single Cessna 182P surveillance fixed wing platform. During the next few months the Riverside Air Unit aircraft will undergo avionics upgrades, to include Becker’s Digital... Read more
4-Jan-2013Source: BBC
Tactical flight officer PC Paul Gridley said: “When we are approaching a scene, usually at 1000ft, we tend to use the blue lights of emergency vehicles as one way of guiding us into the scene” (see full story)... Read more
3-Jan-2013Source: NJ.com
An arbitrator has ruled against the township in a battle over who should pay for helicopter flying lessons taken by two police officers, but an appeal is already under way, officials said. (see full story)... Read more
2-Jan-2013Source: HeliHub.com
As we launch into 2013, HeliHub.com is proud to announce that we filed no fewer than 3,432 news stories in 2012. This averages around 14 stories per working day, and with the rate increasing towards the end of the year, the total for 2013 is expected to be a step-change higher. We are already clear... Read more
1-Jan-2013Source: ACLU of Texas
The ACLU of Texas Tuesday asked Attorney General Greg Abbott to compel the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to comply with open records requests about a DPS shooting of unarmed persons last October 25 that resulted in two fatalities. A sharpshooter fired several shots from a helicopter while in pursuit of a moving vehicle.... Read more
21-Dec-2012Source: HeliHub.com
The team at HeliHub.com would like to wish all our readers a very Happy Christmas and a financially secure 2013. This is the time of the year we celebrate the birth of Jesus, and we trust many of our readers will take time to consider what that means to the world, perhaps through attending a... Read more
21-Dec-2012Source: Eurocopter
The Finnish Border Guard is to expand its Eurocopter fleet with the acquisition of two additional AS332 L1 Super Puma helicopters fully equipped for maritime search and rescue missions in the country’s challenging conditions. With deliveries scheduled for 2015, the rotorcraft will be configured as the AS332 L1e version, incorporating the integrated advanced cockpit and... Read more
20-Dec-2012Source: Florida Times Union
The heroism of two Jacksonville Police officers earned them a Medal of Merit and a Medal of Valor for their May 26 mission during Tropical Storm Beryl. One of the pair received a second medal after a July 23 rescue of a woman in the Intracoastal Waterway. (see full story)... Read more
19-Dec-2012Source: Russian Helicopters
Russian Helicopters, part of Russian state defence holding Oboronprom and a leading global designer and manufacturer of helicopters, this month delivered two multirole Mi-8AMThelicopters built by Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant to the Republic of Tatarstan Interior Ministry. The contract was signed in August 2012 and Russian Helicopters delivered on the helicopters schedule. The Mi-8AMTs will fly missions... Read more
17-Dec-2012Source: Helibras
[Electronic translation from local language] Helibras has held the official handover of another helicopter for Public Security of the Government of Bahia, when the aircraft was presented to the people soteropolitano. This is the first EC145 marketed in the country by the company to operate in that state police missions. ‘s contract acquisition of new... Read more
12-Dec-2012
Commissioned into service Monday at Santa Ynez Airport, state-of-the-art Copter 3 is able to provide law enforcement functions as well as aerial firefighting, search and rescue, air ambulance service, and the transport of Special Enforcement Team (SET) members. (see full story) File photo... Read more
11-Dec-2012Source: European Helicopter Show
European Helicopter Show is pleased to announce the patronage of Mr Přemysl Sobotka, Vice-President of the Senate of Parliament, Czech Republic. The political career of Mr Přemysl Sobotka started in the Velvet Revolution in 1989, where he was a member of the “for-all” Civic Forum and joined the right-wing Civic Democratic Party after its foundation... Read more
11-Dec-2012Source: Grand Forks County
On November 27, 2012 the Federal Aviation Administration issued the Grand Forks County (North Dakota) Sheriff’s Department a Certificate of Authorization (COA) permitting the operation of a Draganflyer X6 small unmanned aircraft system (sUAS) within the 16 counties located in northeastern North Dakota. The counties include: Grand Forks, Rolette, Towner, Cavalier, Pembina, Pierce, Benson, Ramsey,... Read more
30-Nov-2012Source: Helibras
[Electronic translation] The Helibras handed, on Wednesday (28), an AS350 helicopter B3e for the Civil Police of Rio Grande do Sul – the first aircraft to be operated by the corporation in the State. She was delivered by Government Market Manager, Mauro Ayres, and was received in Porto Alegre, the governor Genro. The acquisition is due... Read more
30-Nov-2012
In addition to a new mobile equipment storage truck and armored vehicle, the St. Louis County Police Department has purchased a new helicopter for its Metro Air Support Division. (see full story) file photo... Read more
28-Nov-2012Source: Reuters
The two Draganflyer X6 remote-controlled miniature helicopters purchased by Seattle have so far been mostly grounded, restricted to training and demonstration flights. Each is equipped to carry video, still and night-vision cameras. (see full story)... Read more
27-Nov-2012Source: HeliHub.com
On Thursday 15th November, UK held its first ever Police chief elections and 41 new “Police and Crime Commissioners” have been elected across England and Wales in an attempt to give the public a say in cutting crime in their area. In the far southwest of England lies the counties of Devon and Cornwall, which... Read more
27-Nov-2012Source: Dept of Homeland Security
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Science &Technology (S&T) Directorate and the State of Oklahoma are partnering on the Robotic Aircraft for Public Safety (RAPS) project to test and evaluate Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS) for potential use by the first responder community and DHS operational components. SUAS include small aircraft (typically under 55 pounds... Read more
27-Nov-2012Source: American Eurocopter
American Eurocopter announced today that is has issued a Supplementary Type Certificate (STC) with concurrence from the FAA for the installation of the Trakkabeam A800 Searchlight System on the AS350 B3 helicopter. The A800 searchlight, as installed, provides a compact and modern solution for law enforcement and other operators. Advantages of the Trakkabeam A800 searchlight... Read more
20-Nov-2012Source: AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, is pleased to announce that the Fire Fighting Department of Beijing’s Public Security Bureau has taken delivery of an AW139 intermediate twin engine helicopter. This aircraft will perform fire fighting and disaster relief mission in and around Beijing as well as law enforcement missions in cooperation with the Beijing Police. This... Read more
19-Nov-2012
The Atlanta Police Department’s small fleet of helicopters is scheduled to return to the air Monday, two weeks after the crash of their OH-6A N368PD that killed two law enforcement officers. (see full story) File photo... Read more
18-Nov-2012Source: HeliHub.com
A pair of law enforcement Bell OH-58s came into contact with each other on Saturday, just as one was in the process of landing and the other taking off. Pasadena Police are now two helicopters down, but still have four others immediately available according to a local television interview. Both helicopters ended up on their... Read more
15-Nov-2012Source: American Eurocopter
American Eurocopter announced today that the Alaska Department of Public Safety has purchased an AS350 B3e to support operations of the Alaska Wildlife Troopers and State Troopers. The new AS350 B3e will be based in Fairbanks, Alaska, bringing enhanced capabilities to the agency’s existing helicopter fleet, which also includes an AS350 B3. “When we decided... Read more
5-Nov-2012
The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office has had a helicopter since 2001. It’s the only police helicopter in hundreds of miles, the next closest is in Albuquerque. The unit comprises just Gross, two deputies trained as tactical flight officers and a civilian contract pilot (see full story)... Read more
5-Nov-2012Source: MIchigan Live
The complaint says the pilot operated the chopper “in a reckless and negligent fashion” etc (see full story)... Read more
4-Nov-2012Source: HeliHub.com
Multiple media oulets, including the La Dernière Heure website, have filed a story in recent days saying that the helicopters of the Belgian Federal Police are grounded by budgetary issues. The problem reportedly covers the refuelling of the helicopters at airfields where a fuel card would be used – and the fuel card has no... Read more
2-Nov-2012Source: Kenya Broadcasting
Kenya Police are considering taking Eurocopter to court. The basis is apparently that the manufacturer supplied a newer AS350B3e model and not the older AS350B3 that the police contracted for. (see full story) see also 10-Jun-12 5Y-CDT Eurocopter AS350B3e Ngong Hills, Kenya (6F)... Read more
1-Nov-2012Source: Chicago Tribune
Timothy Swanson faces an investigation into a police helicopter program he began while chief of southwest suburban Countryside in 2005 and then moved to Kankakee County in 2009, records show. (see full story)... Read more
31-Oct-2012Source: San Bernardino Sun
Two forces – one with a Robinson R44 (and expanding to R66) and one with a Cessna fixed-wing – to merge aviation operations (see full story)... Read more
24-Oct-2012Source: Police Aviation News
One of the highlight presentations of the Tangent Link POLICE AVIATION event held in the Prince Hotel & Residence in central Kuala Lumpur this week was that given by Police Senior Superintendent Joselito F Salido of the Philippine National Police [PNP]. During times when it seems few worthwhile sales opportunities are to be found in the law... Read more
23-Oct-2012
The Royal Malaysian Police is looking to expand its fleet of helicopters for better air support in each state. (see full story). They currently operate Eurocopter AS355Ns... Read more
22-Oct-2012
The DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office has a new weapon to help fight crime. The Sheriff recently bought a Robinson R44 Helicopter from the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office in Mississippi. (see full story)... Read more
19-Oct-2012Source: Tracer Aviation
Tracer Aviation, the Cambridge (UK) based developer of specialist airborne video equipment, has launched a new range of High Definition rugged airborne video recorders to meet demand from the airborne surveillance sector which is increasingly using the latest generation of HD camera systems. Following market feedback, Tracer’s new multi-channel recording deck will handle a single... Read more
15-Oct-2012Source: Colombian Air Force
(electronic translation from original) After two days of the seminar held in the capital city, which was represented in 25 countries of the continent, successfully concluded this academic event, where experience showed that Colombia has acquired over time, in the fight against illicit drug trafficking by air. He highlighted the work being done combined with... Read more
12-Oct-2012Source: European Helicopter Show
The dates are now confirmed for European Helicopter Show 2013. The event will take place at Hradec Králové in Czech Republic during 9th – 11th of May 2013. This new helicopter event in Czech Republic, 9th -11th May 2013, is already attracting a positive reaction within the helicopter industry, with major manufacturers including Bell Europe... Read more
12-Oct-2012Source: KEYT
Santa Barbara County Supervisor Janet Wolf is standing by the newly combined Aviation Unit despite some critics who say crews from the fire and sheriff’s department’s are not working well together. (see full story)... Read more
12-Oct-2012Source: KABC
A 20-year-old man has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for firing a gun at a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter while it was in flight. He was 18 at the time of the incident (see full story) File Photo... Read more
10-Oct-2012
The Detroit Police Department, after nearly a decade of pursuit, has been granted a helicopter from the U.S. Military. (see full story) File photo... Read more
10-Oct-2012Source: Morgan Sindall
The Barnstaple office of Morgan Sindall has secured a £1.5 million contract to deliver new offices, welfare facilities and an aircraft hangar at Exeter Airport for Devon and Cornwall Police. The new two-storey office building will house the Air Operations Unit for Devon and Cornwall Police and Devon Air Ambulance Trust, both of which currently... Read more
10-Oct-2012Source: AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, is pleased to announce the signing of a contract for two additional AW139 medium twin helicopters in Japan with its distributor Mitsui Bussan Aerospace. The AW139s will be operated by the Japan National Police Agency (JNPA) to perform multi-role law enforcement missions in the Toyama and Osaka Prefectures. These JNPA helicopters... Read more
8-Oct-2012
A total of 19 helicopters – including Sikorsky S92, S70i and Schweizer 434s – have been deployed in Haj security operations this year and the operations have begun relatively early. (see full story)... Read more
7-Oct-2012Source: Maryland State Police
On Fridya, Governor Martin O’Malley joined Colonel Marcus Brown, officials from AgustaWestland, representatives from the state’s emergency medical services community, and other officials to unveil the first new Maryland State Police medevac helicopter, an important step forward in replacing Maryland’s aging medevac helicopter fleet. “The most sacred responsibility that any government holds is to protect... Read more
3-Oct-2012Source: ACPO
The new National Police Air Service (NPAS) was launched on Monday October 1, 2012 The new service will provide more efficient and accessible air support to the police service throughout England and Wales that offers better value for money. Responding to the findings of a comprehensive review commissioned in 2009, the Association of Chief Police... Read more
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