gacri

This question I'm sure will find itself a bit different than most I have read on here. After much research I felt that this would be the proper place to "tap" into the vast experience from those of you already in the aviation industry. I am thrity eights years old and been a law enforcement officer for approx. (16) years. I currently hold a position as a County Detective under the authority of the local District Attorney. This position allows our office to have countywide jurisdication and support all local law enforcement in the area. With that said, since my younger years I have always had a passion for aviation, wishing to pursue my pilots license. My goal is to try and incorporate aviation into my current position in law enforcement. I see the need for and agency such as ours to offer aeriel photographs (crime scenes), pre-warrant surveillance, tracking of wanted persons, searching of missing persons ect.....From my research this is a very touchy subject as to how I can go about this? I have found many smaller agencies are incorporating LSA due to their low operating costs ect...My thought is to No. 1 - obtain my PPL...and some flight hours No. 2 possibly rent a plan from the local FBO for smaller missions, photographs ect....The ultimate goal is to research funding and possible donations from local businesses for the purchase of our own LSA...Any thoughts or suggestions? I know this the first of many steps, but I wanted to hear everyones thoughts. As for my agency supporting this type of endeavor? It is like any goverment office...get all your ducks in a row first, prove the projects capabilities and how much is it gonna cost us, then and only then will we support it. Any advive on training certifications, hours logged, FAA restrictions ect.. would be helpful. Thanks for your time in advance and all your input.

chritz1179

The first thing is for you to get your ppl.

Learflyer

I always tell guys who want to break in to go ahead and try and get your third class medical certificate (student pilot cert) FIRST in case there may be some underlying medical conditions that you may not know about yet. I say this because i've seen guys go out and spend thousands on flight training only to go out and get their medical and find out they have been diagnosed with diabetes, or have high BP. I'm sure you're golden though. Just a suggestion.

Cubdriver

What exactly is the question? Try and narrow it down a bit. Unless one of our users happens to be an LEO who also set up an aviation wing somewhere, and wants to talk about it, I doubt you are going to get a lot of useful info. On the other hand many of us have done similar aviation ops to what you propose. Pipeline patrol, aerial survey, traffic watch, etc. The activities you mention are all over the place in terms of equipment, training, ops environment, risk, etc. I recommend you concentrate on just one of them and in the meantime get your pilot certificates at least to the commercial level (Private, Instrument, Commercial). That is going to take the better part of a year or two and it sounds like all on your own dime. If you think you are going to spend $5k and take enough lessons to get a sport pilot certificate and then expect to do all that stuff you mention, forget it. You are embarking on something that is a completely parallel career with associated costs and commitment. It could take years to get yourself in a position to actually be able to take on duties as a flying LEO. It would be faster to hire pilots and set it up, but not fly yourself.

rickair7777

I think you are missing a few key points...

You will probably find that your municipality lawyers and/or insurance brokers will require a flight ops department to be setup and run much like 135 operation (formal screening, training, and checking with recurrent training/checking). You will almost certainly need a CPL...LE agencies are NOT in any way exempt from the FAR's so you cannot fly in support of your job (ie be compensated while flying) without a CPL and a 2C medical. A LS or PPL and drivers license will not cut it.


If it's a small agency and all they can afford is an LSA and one pilot (you), you will still probably need to find an outside mechanism to perform independent pilot QA (flight safety, or another contract flight training outfit)


I think this is going to be harder than you think. First step will be to get the concept and budget approved, not start your personal flight training.

Cubdriver

Saw this today and thought of this thread.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alabama State Troopers using more powerful helicopter, more training to become force in rescues

(3/12/12, J. Gray, Birmingham News) After Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast, Alabama State Troopers flew in helicopters over Mississippi and Louisiana, dropping food, water and insulin to families stranded by the storm."People were making signs in their yards with sticks and clothes -- We need help," Chief Pilot Lee Hamilton said. "We kept making those drops over and over again, daylight to dark, for about seven days." One thing troopers couldn't do for those stranded survivors was lift them from the wreckage and fly them to safety. "It would have been nice to have been able to pick these people up, especially the ones who were hurt," Hamilton said. Four years later, equipped with a more powerful helicopter and following the methods of the U.S. Coast Guard, troopers were finally able to start performing the kind of air rescues Hamilton wished they could have made during Katrina. In 2005, troopers had an aviation unit, which searches for fugitives and marijuana fields, and a critical response team, which deploys after natural disasters. After Katrina, troopers were pulled from those units to serve on an air rescue squad that can fly out with people trapped in dangerous situations. To do that, the state in 2007 purchased a Bell 407 helicopter, which -- unlike other trooper helicopters -- can lift people at the end of a 100 or 150 foot line capable of carrying 2,200 pounds. Troopers trained with the Georgia State Patrol Rescue Squad and studied the Naval Hoist Procedure Manual and the U.S. Coast Guard Procedure Manual. By 2009, the new unit was in operation. Today, the 14 troopers hand-selected for the duty search for Alzheimer's patients, track fugitives and pluck people from perilous situations. Three mechanics who maintain the helicopter often double as crew members and are selected for their physical fitness. "When you don't have the manpower you need, you make do with what you have," Hamilton said. In its first three years, the unit has searched for 260 missing people, hunted 212 fugitives, and performed 34 air rescue missions. "Someone who is sharp mentally and physically fit. That's who you want," Hamilton said. "Being able to get on the roof of a car the size of a small tabletop and handing up a 2-year-old to someone who can strap them to a line while in the middle of a river. That's who we look for." There are at least four people on board during a standard rescue mission -- a pilot, a rescue officer who goes down on the line and a flight officer who stays in the back, following hand signals from the officer on the line. The flight officer tells the pilot where to fly based on those hand signals...

Rama

Try to locate agencies with small aviation units they would be able to give you the best advice. Remember in aviation it will always cost more and take longer than you .