Chicago Police Make Return to the Skies
Police in Chicago recently acquired a new, $2.1 million helicopter through Homeland Security funds that features night vision instrumentation which lets officers who wear special goggles see in the dark.
The new helicopter also has a searchlight and a gamma radiation detector designed to help find such things as dirty bombs.
In addition, the helicopter has a LoJack detection system for pinpointing stolen automobiles as well as a special map system. Its robust video cameras can downlink images to the city’s 911 emergency center.
Chicago’s police department also has a helicopter previously used by the fire department that was retrofitted in 2006 for police use.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center (NLECTC) from the Chicago Sun-Times (06/01/07); P. 16; Spielman, Fran.
