King County Sheriff’s Office helicopter damaged – but backup’s in place
Though the King County Sheriff’s Office helicopter Guardian One – used by law-enforcement agencies besides KCSO, including Seattle Police – is in the shop, the department still has one to use if it needs to. So replied KCSO spokesperson Sgt. Cindi West when we followed up on this announcement (which included the photo above):
Earlier today, our Guardian One helicopter was preparing to respond to a burglary in progress and was damaged during the warmup phase. The pilot was preparing the helicopter for lift off. Due to an unknown cause, the helicopter became unstable on a dolly and was damaged. No injuries were reported. The FAA responded to conduct an investigation and has released the helicopter to the Sheriff’s Office for repairs. The Sheriff’s Office will also be conducting an investigation into the cause of the accident and amount (of) damage sustained.
But no, they’re not grounded, Sgt. West reassured WCN: “We do have a backup helicopter and we are still fully functional.”
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December 29th, 2012 at 9:27 pm
good pilot work there lou
December 29th, 2012 at 11:46 pm
So, what was a helicopter going to do for a burglary in progress, drop police officers from repelling lines ?
December 29th, 2012 at 11:48 pm
Guardian One is used for burglary searches relatively often. Suspect flees, can be seen more easily from the air.
December 30th, 2012 at 7:51 am
Helicoptors are used in EVERY FELONY call by the Mesa Police Department as the primary backup until other ground units arrive and have been involved in many high speed chases.
January 1st, 2013 at 10:49 pm
why don’t you buy the wheel kit for the bird , it would be worth the expense.