William Bishop: Airplane would be more costly, less effective

Re “Police plan to buy light aircraft on hold” (Page 1B, Feb. 14): While the Modesto Police Department reconsiders its proposed purchase of an airplane, I suggest they consider three additional facts:

1. To the airplane’s $660,000 price tag must be added the liability costs for when the plane crashes into a downtown block or schoolyard. Don’t count on an insurance payout to cover everything. The crash in Tulare County, onto flat farmland, killed only the occupants of the plane.

2. The 100 mph horizontal airspeed translates into 8,800 feet per minute on the ground. While this is much faster than a running miscreant, a man running in the canyons of a city street or a tree-lined residential area will be lost to view very quickly. This speed differential works to the running man’s advantage.

3. While an “eye in the sky” does impart a God-like sense of power, the experience is quite transitory. It is much like a cocaine high: no matter how high you get, the price is higher.

This story was originally published February 16, 2016 at 2:26 PM with the headline "William Bishop: Airplane would be more costly, less effective."