Air Operations - About Us - Surrey Police

Helicopter Over My House

Was that the police helicopter?

The Force helicopter is always deployed for a very good reason, even when it's flying over your house in the early hours of the morning.

The helicopter and its crew respond to a variety of tasks that include assisting officers on the ground with searching for suspects and vulnerable missing persons. The aircraft is also used for other tasks including intelligence - led high visibility patrolling to prevent and detect crime and disorder, providing essential support to officers down on the ground.

Yes, but what's it doing over MY house?

It is fully understood that sometimes having the police helicopter hovering near to or over your house may cause you some concern but please be reassured that the aircraft will always be there for a good reason.

Often enquiries are received regarding what the aircraft was dealing with and these pages will provide an insight into its work as well as showing how it helps in keeping you and your community safe.

Inspector Steve Cheeseman from the Air Operations Unit said, "Please be reassured if you see or hear the police helicopter. It is very effective and plays an important role in helping to make Surrey safer".

This page will be regularly updated with details about main deployments, so that if you are disturbed at one o'clock in the morning a visit here will help you understand why.

The Helicopter

Surrey Police's Air Operations Unit is equipped with an EC135 Advanced Police Helicopter. This type and model is generally recognised as the most suitable aircraft for use by the police, and is currently in service with 15 forces throughout the UK. It is crewed by officers from Surrey, and flown by pilots with extensive military and civil aviation experience.

Using the unique capabilities of a helicopter, and the state of the art equipment carried on board, our role is to provide the staff of Surrey Police with a high-quality and effective tool, that will assist them in the day to day policing of Surrey.

Above all, to the public and police officers of Surrey, we provide safety.

We offer a wide range of services, which are mostly, but not exclusively, crime related, and include:

Searching

Whether to track and detain criminals, locate missing persons or search for abandoned vehicles or property, the helicopter crew can search large areas swiftly and extremely efficiently.

It doesn´t matter if it´s day or night. Using the video camera or thermal image sensor, we can search open areas such as playing fields, golf courses and common land, or we can check inaccessible areas such as rear gardens, rooftops, rivers or enclosed premises, safely.

A search made by the helicopter takes a fraction of the time that would be taken by ground units. For example, to cover an area that would take 450 man hours takes a helicopter a mere 12 minutes. It uses far fewer resources and improves safety for those on the ground.

Containment

If we can, we will try and contain a crime scene with suspects from the air.

This in turn means that ground units have time to properly consider their options and deploy their resources accurately. The crew can also advise on hazards and inaccessible areas which can only be seen from the air.

Vehicle Pursuits

With increasing public concern over the safety of vehicle pursuits, the helicopter can follow a target without the need for police vehicles to be in close contact. This reduces the chances of an accident occurring during the pursuit and improves safety for all involved on the ground.

With an excellent view ahead of the pursuit, crews can offer advice on route options, hazards ahead and tactical options for the use of Surrey´s renowned Tactical Pursuit and Containment Units, or the Stinger vehicle immobiliser. This also places air support in a prime position should the suspects attempt to run from the vehicle.

'Downlinking'

Our aircraft have the ability to transmit real-time video pictures to suitably equipped receivers on the ground - downlinking.

Downlinkng video footage to control centres and units at the scene of an incident. This allows commanders to obtain an overall view of an incident, whether it be for planning at events such as the Derby, or the scene of a major incident, a large fire or a rave.

The various Police "nerve centres" around the county have such receivers permanently installed to enable controllers to gain up-to-the-second information as incidents occur. The unit also has a mobile receiver which can be run from a its own internal battery or car battery at an incident scene, or from the mains at the local control room. There are also a few Mobile Support Unit vehicles fitted with receivers.

It is important to remember that we are not a patrol unit, and it is not our job to catch speeding motorists or report on traffic queues. We are here to provide an important police service towards the goal of making Surrey safer, and when we are flying it is always on an important task. Our aircraft is significantly quieter than other helicopters, due to the unique design of its tail rotor, but should you hear us overhead we would ask that you be reassured rather than annoyed. To find out more about why the helicopter may be overhead please read the following section on Helicopter over my house. The next time you hear us, it could be that we're there to help.

In a single year the Air Operations Unit helps solve roughly 600 crimes, and assists greatly in finding lost or missing persons, but the value of the unit is not calculated solely by numbers. The aircraft is a vital tool in saving money and increasing safety for the police officers and the public of Surrey.

Hopefully this information will help provide an overview of the vital service the police helicopter performs.

The Technology

The Helicopter

Air Support operates an EC135 Advanced Police Helicopter. The aircraft is fitted with a range of high-tech equipment which the crew are trained to use to a high standard.

Tracker

Similar to the system fitted to mobile units on the ground, the Tracker does as the name implies – it tracks down stolen vehicles or items. However, the airborne Tracker is particularly effective because it can receive the signal from much greater distances and can carry out a thorough search of an area for the stolen item, often locating it without assistance from ground units.

Video Camera and Thermal Image Sensor

The Agema Ball under the aircraft's nose contains the video camera and thermal image sensor. Fitted inside this is a "television broadcast quality" video camera with 360-degree view.

The thermal imager is also fitted inside the rotating pod alongside the video camera. This is a sophisticated piece of equipment that can pick out a hidden or trapped person out of normal view, a hot vehicle engine, or a fire underneath a roof space.

Downlink

This system gives true meaning to the term "eye in the sky". The downlink transmits live pictures to the ground on a microwave frequency, enabling ground units to receive real-time pictures of events.

Nitesun

This steerable searchlight is mounted beneath the tail of the aircraft and is controlled by the observer in the rear seat. Rated at 30 million candlepower, it can be focused to enable the operator to illuminate an area the size of a football pitch or to pick out a single suspect in the darkness.

Digital Imagery

We constantly review our available equipment and monitor the market for new technology. A very high-resolution professional digital stills camera, a range of lenses and a fully equipped digital imagery suite are now available to the crews at the Fairoaks base. This allows us to download aerial photographs, then forward them instantly to staff around the County.