Police helicopter units: an aerial view of an understudied police unit.

Many police agencies – especially large police agencies – employ helicopter units as part of their operations. Helicopter units exhibit the potential to impact an array of policing outcomes, including efficiency and effectiveness. Helicopter units, however, have received only scant attention among scholarly literature. Drawing upon data from two different police agencies in the U.S.A., I provide an empirical snapshot of helicopter units as they operate in frontline policing. My analyses reveal that helicopter units engage in a variety of different activities, most of which are related to crime control, and contribute to a variety of different policing outputs, such as arrests and recoveries of stolen vehicles. My analyses also reveal that approximately half of calls for service handled by helicopter units are classified as crime-specific call-types and that helicopter units are generally quick to arrive at calls once dispatched. I discuss my findings with respect to both policing research and policing practice. I also use my findings to call for future research regarding the use of helicopter units in contemporary policing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]