In the last month, San Jose has proposed temporarily grounding its helicopter to save money, Costa Mesa has stopped flying, Long Beach is looking to downgrade to cheaper helicopters, and now it’s the turn of Fresno.  The city operates two Eurocopter EC120s, as shown in the photo below

The City of Fresno is cutting back its Skywatch program from seven to four days a week in an effort to trim the $1.3M annual program cost.  Police Chief Jerry Dyer refuses to ground the program completely because they are “force multipliers”, meaning they need less patrol units on the ground, while still keeping the public safe.

Due to the reduction in flight hours, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department and CHP helicopters will assist if they are available.

Photos: Fresno PD Skywatch