Universal City – Universal City Police has launched a new pilot program to fight crime from the sky.
UCPD Officer Nicolas Guerrero is the first drone pilot for his agency. He flies them as a hobby on his own, but manning this investigative tool for his department is a job he takes very seriously.
“It’s a very rigorous process as a very, very tough class that I’ve ever encountered in my law enforcement career,” he explains about the pilot class.
The pilot program has been in the works for a few months, and he’s already been able to help search for a person and provided aerial- intelligence to another agency during a chase.
UCPD counts on air support from other agencies, but having a drone to deploy quickly for smaller matters is convenient.
Guerrero says the goal is to train other officers to fly.
“We could have an actual drone team to where we could start assisting different agencies that don’t have the drone program. Or maybe we could help set a standard for other agencies as well,” he said.
Guerrero says there are challenges. Their proximity to Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph means there’s an extra precaution and constant communication with authorities there when he flies the drone.