After years of planning, Wheeling Police debuted the department’s new drone unit Thursday and discussed its many uses and opportunities in the interest of public safety. 

Throughout the week, the department spent hours training with representatives from Steel City Drones of Pittsburgh, Pa. Instructors offered education on the general functionality of the drone, flying techniques and in-flight emergency situations, advanced ground school, and scenario tactical training.

“There have been many times that a drone could have come in handy at the WPD, but we just didn’t have one readily available. Now that we do, the uses are endless,” said Cpl. Jason Martin, team lead for the new WPD drone unit - called the Unmanned Aerial Reconnaissance Team (UART).

The UART is comprised of four Wheeling Police officers and the department’s crime analyst.

The bulk of this past week’s training was running through various emergency scenarios, including missing persons, traffic related incidents, exploring area waterways and criminal activity calls. 

“We’ve experienced a lot of these incidents before – flooding, traffic crashes and searching areas that are not accessible by vehicle. A lot of times without easy roadway access, it’s hard to get a full picture of what’s happening. Having the drone and our team trained and ready to go will help greatly in any type of emergency,” Cpl. Martin added.

WPD personnel also were educated on FAA rules and regulations and continue to work on individual commercial drone licensing.

The drone, DJI Matrice 300 is equipped with a Zemuse H20T camera and was purchased – along with additional equipment – in part by the city of Wheeling and the Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program.