Aviation
Aviation Unit Mission Statement
The Mission of the Aviation Unit is to provide safe, tactical and effective support to the Department.
Why is the helicopter flying over my house/neighborhood?
The police helicopter may be flying in your area for a variety of reasons. They may be responding to a call for service nearby. Or they may be patrolling your area to help reduce criminal activity. Also, there are other helicopters that operate in our county such as news gathering helicopters or air ambulances so the helicopter you see or hear may not be the police helicopter.
Can I ride in the helicopter?
Due to the nature of our mission profiles, passengers are not normally carried onboard. The helicopter is only used for official County business.
How fast does the helicopter fly?
The helicopter can fly as fast as 150 miles per hour and as slow as zero (helicopters can hover) but we typically fly around 60 miles per hour.
How high does the helicopter fly?
Our helicopter can fly as high as 20,000 feet but due to the nature of our mission profiles, we typically fly between 500 and 1000 feet above the ground.