Modesto police hope to get drop on criminals by buying their own plane. Here’s the cost
.jpeg "Modesto police are proposing to purchase a GippsAero GA8. They say the CHP uses the aircraft. The same model of plane police want to purchase is pictured.")
The Modesto Police Department wants its own crime fighter in the sky.
Police officials will present their proposal to buy an airplane at the City Council’s Safety and Communities Committee meeting Monday afternoon.
It would take the approval of the full council at a subsequent meeting for the department to purchase the aircraft. The department wants to spend nearly $741,000 for a 2012 GippsAero GA8 equipped with an infrared day-and-night camera and other gear, according to a department report.
The single-engine plane is a light utility aircraft that can be used for carrying freight, search and rescue, surveillance and observation, and for skydivers.
“Air support units have the ability to scan large areas, increasing the chances of halting crime and apprehending suspects,” according to the report. “While on patrol, they are on constant lookout for criminal activity, including traffic violations and drunk drivers.”
The report states the airplane can make a pursuit safer by allowing officers in vehicles to pull back and reduce their speed while the airplane tracks the fleeing suspect.
The report states the aircraft costs $550,000. The other costs include $135,000 for a high-definition camera and associated equipment, as well as taxes and escrow. The city also would pay an additional $8,800 to have an independent pilot fly the plane from Pennsylvania to Modesto. That includes the cost of the plane’s fuel and the pilot’ lodging.
The report states the city would pay for the purchase through the Police Department’s traffic safety and state law enforcement supplemental funds. The report states the purchase of the 2012 aircraft is a cost-effective way of increasing the department’s effectiveness.
The department has had a longstanding challenge of hiring and keeping officers. It had about two dozen vacancies among its 210 officers in mid-December.
The report states it would cost the department about $394,000 annually to maintain the aircraft. That includes $60,000 to pay part-time, commercially rated civilian pilots to fly it. The Police Department expects the aircraft would be in the air 1,000 hours annually.
Police Chief Brandon Gillespie and Assistant Police Chief Ivan Valencia did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday afternoon after the city released the agenda for Monday’s committee meeting.
The Police Department had a five-and-half-month partnership with BLENDABLE Air to provide the city with a 2017 Auto Gyro aircraft, according to the department’s report. The report states the gyroplane helped drive down crime during its nearly six months of operations.
This is the second time in recent years that the department has attempted to buy an aircraft.
Then Police Chief Galen Carroll brought forth a proposal to the City Council in late 2015 for the purchase of a light sport aircraft. The council referred the proposal to two of its committees for further review.
The proposal was placed on hold in February 2016 after a Tulare County Sheriff’s Office light sport aircraft crashed, killing the pilot and a deputy. This was the same type of aircraft that the Police Department sought, and it had worked with the Tulare County agency in developing its proposal.
Monday’s meeting starts at 4 p.m. and will be held over Zoom. The meeting is open to the public. The meeting ID is 869 4597 0570 and the passcode is 84326.
People without computers or smartphones can attend by calling 1-877-853-5257 or 1-888-475-4499 and entering the meeting ID and passcode.
This story was originally published February 12, 2023 at 5:30 AM.
