Overview
The Air Support Unit provides covert, nighttime patrol support, and covert daylight surveillance for illegal activity. The Unit also provides prisoner transport for extraditions.
The Unit maintains two transport, fixed-winged aircraft (a Cessna 210 and a Cessna 310), and two HT-420 patrol/surveillance airplanes, as well as one MD530FF helicopter.
The Unit is comprised of six pilots, several tactical flight deputies, three mechanics and one pilot sergeant. The pilots have more than 60 years and 34,000 hours of flying experience. Student pilots must obtain a F.A.A. Commercial/Instrument License. All further training is conducted in-house and takes approximately two years before a new pilot is considered mission qualified. Each pilot flies approximately 700 hours a year, half of which is at night in a pitch-black environment. Deputy pilots are the overall mission commanders, flying the plane and making response decisions.
Tactical flight deputies operate surveillance and observation systems and Mobile Data Computers on the HT-420 and relay pertinent information to deputies on the ground via the Department radio. They receive several hours of aircraft systems familiarization training and several hours of practical training using Forward Looking Infra Red and Night Vision systems.
The Unit’s airframe and power-plant mechanics perform aircraft maintenance. The mechanics conduct routine maintenance inspections, including “100 hour” and “50 hour” inspections, and perform all necessary airframe modifications to accommodate specialized equipment.