From May 15-May 26, Red Deer RCMP will be participating in a ‘pilot’ program to test Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems, commonly known as drones, and how it can be used to respond to calls for service.
Mounties say Red Deer was selected as one of three communities for the RPAS trials, scheduled for May and June of this year. The trials are being held in a mid-sized community, large municipality, and an Indigenous community.
According to police, RPAS technology is already used by the Alberta RCMP for a variety of needs including traffic accident reconstruction, search and rescue, major crimes investigation, and emergency response team calls. RCMP say the trial is being conducted as another step in exploring potential new ways RPAS technology can be used to help ensure the safety of Albertans.The objective of the trials are to learn more about RPAS, to test different technologies, and to determine how RPAS can be used to better serve communities.
During the trial period, the RCMP will be testing a new type of service delivery where RPAS will be used to assist police responding to certain calls by providing air support. RPAS will be deployed from the Downtown RCMP Detachment on 51st Ave and the North side RCMP Detachment for various calls to service including crimes in progress, flight from police, suspicious persons, missing persons, assist EMS/Fire, or even to support natural disaster response.
“We are always looking for new ways that we can work with our communities to ensure their safety and build public trust and confidence,” says Superintendent Holly Glassford, Officer in Charge of the Red Deer City RCMP. “These trials give us the chance to build on the successes we’ve already seen using RPAS. We’re very excited to learn how we can use evolving technology and new methods to better serve our community.”
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