Viewers Given Glimpse of the Future of Law Enforcement

In another first for the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle and for Tactical Aerospace Group (TAG), last week's episode of the hit CBS network series, CSI:NY featured a supporting cast member in the form of a TAG UAV helicopter.

The one hour feature episode entitled "The Dove Commission" stars Gary Sinise and Melina Kanakaredes and was directed by Emilio Estevez. The show used a variation of a TAG "C" type UAV helicopter as a member of the elite NYPD Technical Assistance Response Unit to perform on-camera maneuvers integral to the story line.

The weaponized helicopter represented in the show was fitted with dual .30 caliber guns, video and thermal vision as well as a laser target acquisition system. The UAV was shown flying through the New York skyline culminating in a firing sequence from the outside of a 65th floor of a high rise building.

Use of the TAG UAV in media productions allows for the size, scale and payload capabilities to portray or represent any rotary aircraft with realistic flight characteristics and detailed visual representation.

Although fictionalized in this episode with the NYPD, it indicates the very near future as these and other major departments move to integrate the strategic advantages offered by TAG UAVs into their arsenal of tools to avert crime and assist in surveillance, patrols, incident response and homeland defense capabilities.

The remote unmanned helicopter enhances law enforcement aerial capabilities by acting as a force multiplier for their existing airborne assets. This frees the department's existing helicopters, along with their pilots and flight crews, to concentrate on incidents where human intervention and intelligence is needed on site. The TAG helicopter is also a welcome and viable solution to provide aerial capabilities to law enforcement departments that could not otherwise afford to acquire and maintain an aircraft contingent.

Sized to be transportable by SUV, trailer or van, the TAG UAV can be deployed in minutes to hover over an incident or crime scene providing crucial video or thermal imaging intelligence. The helicopter can also act as either a communications repeater or a local WiFi hub to provide full multimedia coverage to all law enforcement personnel in the vicinity by providing a downlink to the local command center and to their vehicles or portable handheld PDAs carried by each officer.


Sources: New York City Police Department, Tactical Aerospace Group

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Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police. He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country.   He writes for many police and crime magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer, Campus Law Enforcement Journal, and others.   He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc.  His book Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com, Booksamillion.com, and can be ordered at local bookstores.