During active shooter incidents and scenarios involving armed and dangerous suspects, the Billings Police Department can deploy Serendipitously, after the Billings Beat drone series aired, a 14-hour standoff ensued with multiple S.W.A.T. Teams from multiple Montana law enforcement agencies. The drones helped support tactical operations happening on the ground.
Not only is it considerably safer to send in drones to investigate these highly volatile and dangerous scenarios in place of sending in police officers into direct lines of fire, but the drones can also gather significantly more informative data in real-time thanks to their expanded field of view which is extremely helpful.
Drones can be used to assist in arrests and active standoffs such as the one in the Heights on Birch Lane over the weekend.
They provide law enforcement officers with aerial views of potential hiding places and areas where a suspect may be able to flee the scene.. The drones and the Billings Police Department drone program are new and the Drone team is approved through licenses to fly by the FAA. It’s like getting a pilots license but with fewer air hours.