The Ross Police has a unit of officers trained to fly small Unmanned Aircraft System (sUAS). These are quadcopters, equipped with various special functions. Most importantly is the camera system that is able to provide surveillance and views for active and ongoing incidents that would otherwise be unavailable. The department has two officers certified as sUAS pilots through the FAA.
Purpose
These aircraft are primarily used to photograph crash and crime scenes, in order to assist investigators with incident mapping and in providing aerial photographs. The sUAS can also assist with search and rescue missions, situational awareness for incident command in case of a large-scale incident, tactical deployment to support officers and tactical units such as the North Hills SRT in emergency situations, and a visual perspective for crowd control, traffic management, or temporary perimeter security.