MP SEES HOW AIR OPERATIONS CUT COSTS AND BENEFIT CRIME DETECTION (East Staffordshire Liberal Democrats)

East Staffordshire Liberal Democrats <info@libdems.org.uk>

MP SEES HOW AIR OPERATIONS CUT COSTS AND BENEFIT CRIME DETECTION

December 2, 2008 12:14 PM
Originally published by West Midlands Liberal Democrats

MP SEES HOW AIR OPERATIONS CUT COSTS AND BENEFIT CRIME DETECTION Solihull's MP, Lorely Burt joined councillors Glenis Slater and Jean Hamilton (pictured with Lorely) last week on a visit to the West Midlands Police Air Operations Unit based at Birmingham International Airport.

The visit was requested by Mrs Burt to see how effective the Police helicopter can be in helping to detect crime and assist with arrests in the borough.

The helicopter in service is just one year old and currently the most advanced in the country with highly specialised electronic detection equipment on board.

"Crews can reach anywhere from Wolverhampton to Coventry within seven minutes and have already played their part in 280 arrests in the year since April 2007, " said Lorely.

"Crime scenes can also be searched in a matter of minutes where traditional policing methods on the ground would take hundreds of hours, saving huge amounts of police time and money for other activities.

"Criminals on the run often give themselves up as soon as they realise the helicopter is one their trail because it is virtually impossible for to remain undetected.

"High value stolen cars can also be located from the air by picking up tracker signals from the vehicles, often without the thieves being aware that they have been identified.

"Solihull police received assistance from the Aviation Unit at over 200 incidents in the borough last year.

"Of course cost is an issue, but I am convinced that the Aviation Unit is good value for money and plays a vital role in the battle against crime both here and across the region."