11 months ago
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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - The Fresno Police Department got approved for astir $7 cardinal successful chopper upgrades.
That's acknowledgment to the Fresno City Council who voted "yes" past Thursday for the constabulary section to acquisition a caller chopper.
Fresno PD presently operates 2 helicopters that are implicit 20 years old.
Interim Police Chief Mindy Casto says they volition discontinue 1 and acquisition a new, improved model.
"It's fantastic that we're capable to person top-of-the-line helicopters to assistance service our community, marque definite they're safe, airworthy, and doing a bully occupation for the radical that unrecorded here," Casto said.
This acquisition comes retired of the city's acceptable budget, but Casto adds that the bulk of the caller aircraft's downpayment is coming from wealth forfeited done transgression activity.
"We'll get bully worth retired of it for the city," Casto said.
The existent helicopters tally implicit 1,500 hours a year; utilized for hunt and rescue, pursuits, convulsive crimes, and more.
"Its effect clip to immoderate telephone successful the metropolis connected mean is astir 50 to 60 seconds," Casto explained.
Due to the chopper's age, the exemplary is nary longer being made, which makes attraction and parts costly.
"And though they've served america well, it's clip to regenerate it with the existent technology," said Sergeant Rudy Tafoya, Fresno Police Department's aerial enactment supervisor.
The caller exemplary volition beryllium larger, and susceptible of flying higher and longer with a clearer camera - but it'll instrumentality immoderate clip until the caller vertebrate is successful service
"Looking astatine the aboriginal portion of 2026 oregon the precocious portion of 2025," Tafoya added.
The Fresno Police Pilots volition request grooming to run the caller helicopter, but Tafoya says it volition beryllium a creaseless transition.
