MPD Officer Completes UAV Operators School, Becomes FAA Qualified Drone Pilot
March 9th, 2022 by Joe Burgess
According to Monticello Police Chief Jason Akers, MPD’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Program is officially operational.
Officer Shawn Curtis recently completed a 40 hour course on UAV Operation and successfully obtained pilots licensing for operating the equipment.
The drone, which has thermal/ heat seeking capabilities, will be utilized by MPD in search and rescue operations as well as crime scene mapping and natural disaster situations.
Progressive departments across the United States are utilizing such technology not only to gain aerial views of storm damage, survey crime scene terrain, or searching for prison escapees but also for rescue operations. MPD’s drone is capable of finding a lost person via thermal technology and the pilot can hover over the lost person and speak to them and guide them to safety.
Fire Departments can utilize a UAV to assess fire hot spots in buildings and assess grass fire size, among other fire related uses.
“Our citizens deserve access to every asset possible when it comes to making our town safe. MPD will continue to bring advanced capabilities to our town now and in the future”.
Jason
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