KTLA News: "Los Angeles Police Department helicopter deployment" (1980)

This is how the city looks to the officers who fly in helicopters for the Los Angeles Police Department's air support division. Day in and day out in almost every kind of weather, air units patrol high above the city of the angels. From this vantage point, the copter pilot and observer can see things most ground units might miss. 80% of their flight activity is to supplement ground units, aid in the apprehension of suspects. There's a great deal of uh visual uh patrol that most of the particularly gang members uh like to avoid the helicopter when some of them have stated in the past that uh when the helicopter's up, they're not Do you feel any less a cop being up in the air than down on the ground? >> No. I uh I believe it's a little more satisfaction because we get probably more action than the regular man in a police car where we go from hot shot to hot shot. So, we're we're covering a larger area and get to see much more than if we were in a car assigned to just a very small area. Of course, choppers are useful tools against most other types of crime, from autotheft and bank robberies to kidnappings and assaults. Quick response time is an important part of effective law enforcement, and that's where air units excel. They frequently can be over a crime seen just a few seconds after it's reported. That often is the advantage that results in the quick apprehension of a suspect. The men who fly up there are dedicated, hardworking law officers. >> How long does it take you to get to know the city from the air? >> Oh, you have to work down on the street approximately 5 years before they even allow you to come out here to be a observer for the Los Angeles Police Department. And uh they like to put you in the areas where you've been assigned to prior. And like myself, I knew the city quite well. >> To cover the city's 463 square miles, there are just 16 helicopters of various vintages. Many are far past their prime and usable only under special circumstances, then allowing for scheduled maintenance time, unexpected repairs, and other contingencies. Only half the fleet is available most of the time. Most people never notice the department's helicopters until one wakes them up as it circles overhead in the middle of the night. That certainly is not a pleasant experience, but for most people, it should be a reassuring one, knowing that someone is up there taking a few risks to protect and to serve. For News at 10, Tony Valdez. This is the track for LAPD copters. To cover the city's 463 square miles, there are 16 helicopters of various vintages. Many are far past their prime and usable only under special circumstances. Then allowing for scheduled maintenance, unexpected repairs and other contingencies only half the fleet is usually but budgets being what they are in these pro Come all the way over here. Pass three. case. How many years have you been with the department? >> 25. >> 25 years. That would mean you'd have five. >> That's right. >> Okay. Hold it a second, >> Lieutenant. The department spends, you know, several million dollars a year for these choppers. How effective are they? >> Well, they're extremely effective in the manner that we use them. They we use >> Would you like to see air support you nighttime viewing capabilities? >> But I get the impression that there are some blocks. >> Oh, there are fiscal dollars. Yes. >> Any chance of that changing? Uh >> I don't see it. >> Prop 13. >> Yes. >> What is it like up there trying to find? But budgets being they are in these postproposition 13 days, no one is expecting dramatic changes in the near future. >> We could use several more helicopters. We could replace some of the fleet that's starting to age. Uh yeah, there's a lot more that we could use. >> We got information that there's a go for. Can I help you? >> Yeah. This is eliminate 89. We got information that there's a a goat cart down at the river and we got our a victim and a PR that just observed it down at uh San Fernando and uh Figaro. We're headed down that way. This go gets up to miles an hour. You might end up in a little gas area. >> Any idea what direction was going at 89? They're right around down at the intersection of the river where uh it comes down from Pasadena Freeways adjacent to it down to San Fernando. >> All right, we'll head toward see if we can find it for you. >> Okay, we're going down there right now. We'll let you know. >> Victor one to 89. >> Hey, go ahead, Victor. Hey, Roger. We're over the riverbed right now. All right, Joe. Uh, do you have any idea which direction this thing was heading? >> No. Uh, probably thought within the last 10 minutes. >> You got about five kids. It turned out to appear they had a rifle and uh where code six there. We're trying to get down to the riverbed right now where that go-kart supposed to be at. >> Yeah, there's a lot of tracks down there on the river. It looks like they went north of it with it and then possibly up the uh Pasadena with the tire tracks that I've got indicated. >> Head out that way right now. >> Okay, I've got you spotted. I'm going to go back up to where the river turns into back to dirt and see if there's any tracks going up the side of the hill. If not, then I'll head off the path. >> Victor, when he's going to direct you where he sees the tracks. Okay. Yeah, they're all over down here at the bottom. The tracks unit 41 415 a virtual jungle down there in that backyard. I got a very good >> Yeah, I can't see anything down in there. It's like a jungle down there. >> That guy could hide anywhere down here from me. I got the whole area blocked off. There's nowhere he can come out of there without running into somebody. 45. Why don't you give a description of that suspic in the backyard that we might have them trapped here? Yeah, I got somebody north of you. >> Is that you? Okay. I got 989 down below you and I got 181 that's just a little bit left of you and I got 936 just a little east of you and I got 926 down at the bottom of the hill in case there's no come out. >> Okay, it's >> quite often so like we were doing out there today. You spent several years in a radio car, right? >> Right. >> And how long have you been up in the air? >> Believe. So there's been some times where you had a little white knuckle flying once in a while, but I I feel much safer here. I just uh I'd spent 5 and a half years on motors prior to that. And I uh I felt much safer in the air than on the ground. >> I don't blame you. Okay. Most people never notice the department's helicopters until one wakes them up during the night as it circles overhead. Most people never notice the department's helicopters until one wakes them up. I'm