CRESTVIEW — While other attendees arrived at the Crestview Area Chamber of Commerce's Feb. 2 monthly breakfast meeting by personal vehicle, Police Chief Tony Taylor dropped in. Literally.
Taylor accepted an invitation from Advanced Aerial Operations pilot and owner Mario Werth to ride to the breakfast by helicopter.
While Werth's arrival by whirlybird was planned as an opportunity to showcase his helicopter flight instruction, aerial services, tours and "Pilot For a Day" programs, having the police chief as a captive passenger afforded the pilot an opportunity to suggest his services for law enforcement applications as well.
Upon landing at the Crestview Community Center, Taylor told the CVCTV website he could see many ways Werth's company can assist law enforcement, including drug enforcement, crime scene aerial observation and traffic monitoring.
Worth, who was recently awarded a city contract to teach pilotless aircraft applications, techniques and operations to the Police Department, said while drones are becoming more prevalent, there are still things a helicopter can do that the pilotless aircraft can't.
"Aerial cameras are expensive but the handheld ones are cheaper," Werth said. "With a thermal camera mounted on the helicopter, you can check for grow houses and things like that."
As for his lift, Taylor said he was surprised by the Bell 45-G2 helicopter's stability.
"It was real smooth," Taylor said of the aircraft, sometimes called "the 'M*A*S*H' helicopter" for its appearances in the film and TV series as a Korean War aerial workhorse.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview police chief sees benefits of aerial operations (VIDEO)