Nottinghamshire's police and fire services say a new state-of-the-art drone will help to fight crime and "save lives".
The new £30,000 drone will be used by the fire service to support operations at incidents, including responding to disasters, car crashes,and when dealing with hazardous materials and large scale fires.
Police will use the the drone to track suspects from the sky in firearm incidents, as well as in the search for missing people. Officers say it will also help handle counter-terrorism operations, rural crime and gather evidence to secure court convictions.
The new equipment was demonstrated on Friday, March 29 at the fire service's headquarters in Arnold.
The drone has been fitted with the latest high-definition cameras and thermal imaging technology and this equipment, allowing officers to cover more ground on their patrols.
Paddy Tipping, Nottinghamshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, said that the drone was a further tool to keep people safe.
“The drone is a cost-effective eye-in-the-sky. It isn’t replacing the helicopter, but it will enhance our aerial capability," he added.
“There is no doubt that it will help to catch criminals, locate missing people, provide vital updates to both services on various incidents and I’m sure that it will be a valuable means of tackling crime in more rural areas.
"This is an investment thanks to this year’s budget and it illustrates how technology can bring significant tactical benefits to local services.”
Assistant Chief Constable Kate Meynell added: "This is great news for both organisations and will give the force another tool to be used to help tackle crime.
"The new drone will give officers a chance to scan large areas in a very short time and could ultimately save lives."
Incident commander and station manager at Highfields, Christian Brown, said the drone could spot a rabbit from half a mile due to its powerful camera.
High-tech thermal imagery also allows firefighters to study fires from afar and work out where to attack it from.
He added: "It's incredibly exciting to launch the drone with police in a collaborative effort. The drone will enable incident commanders to assess the situation from above and make safe informed decisions on the best way to tackle a fire, keeping firefighters safe.
"These drones literally save lives. They've been used in Lincolnshire where it spotted a person who had crashed and was lying in a field in the freezing cold. They would have died without being seen.
"It is a state-of-the-art piece of kit that will go a long way to helping both fire and police services."
The drone can be legally flown to a maximum height of 400ft.
Each drone is powered by rechargeable batteries and fully charged these can allow flight from between 20 and 45 minutes.
The force has also bought another drone which will be used for training purposes.
The two drones have been funded by both organisations.
A group of 10 officers from the force’s five response teams will be trained to fly the drone, to ensure that it can be flown at any point to help with incidents.
The new equipment will be available to be used at the end of June 2019.
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