The UK’s South Yorkshire Police Force

was given a much-appreciated boost

in December with the delivery of its

new MD 902 Explorer.

“We were operating a Twin

Squirrel and it was 21 years old last

year,” said Inspector Clive Marsden of

Operational Support Services, Air

Support Unit, South Yorkshire. “A

couple of years ago, before my time in

the unit – it was decided that we

should start the process to look at

acquiring a replacement aircraft - a

brand new one. We started the project

two years ago. It involved making a

bid to the Home Office for capital

funding. Once that had been

obtained, the remainder of the overall

cost was met by the Police Authority.

“It came down to a comparison

between the Explorer and the EC135

and after much deliberation we opted

for the Explorer.”

Marsden feels that it’s an ideal

model for police work. “We operate a

consortium, it’s a mutual aid venture

with West Yorkshire Police and

Humberside Police, who are our

bordering forces. They both operate

902s, so we’ve been able to draw on

their experience and they’ve been

very helpful, as have all the other 902

operators, they’ve all been very open

– telling us about the benefits and

problems of the 902,” he said.

The 902 started its life in Mesa,

Arizona, where MD are based. The

carbon-fibre airframe itself was put

together in Turkey and shipped

across to the United States. The

engines are Pratt and Whitney made

in Canada, the gearbox was made in

Japan. The aircraft was assembled as

a green hull in Mesa and was then

test-flown over there. Following that

it was transported on a ship by

container to Southampton. It was

then flown up to Police Aviation

Services (PAS), who then commenced

to convert the aircraft to a Police roleequipped

helicopter, incorporating

the specific role equipment selected

by South Yorkshire Police.

“The handover took place at PAS,”

Marsden continued. “The press

release then fell on the same day as

the centenary celebrations of the

Wright brothers’ first powered flight,

which wasn’t intentional, but it didn’t

escape our notice either!

“We’ve used it in searches for

missing persons, stolen vehicle

pursuits, searches for wanted persons

and stolen property. We also assist in

the policing of football matches and

other events in the country. Despite

only going ‘live’ at the start of the

year, we have already had a fair

degree of success.

“During the first week, the most

significant success we’ve had was

locating a mentally ill man who was

threatening to kill himself,” he said.

“Solely down to the aircraft, this

person was located and detained. He

was also a wanted person. He’d armed

himself with a knife and threatened to

hang himself. We found him as a

direct result of the aircraft being

available, having the right kit

onboard and having an experienced

crew,” he said.

He reports that it’s performing

very well. “Operating this aircraft is

different from the Squirrel. It’s

quieter, due to the NOTAR system

and it is more powerful, giving us an

extended range and flying. The noise

issue is important as we operate

predominantly in an urban area and

don’t want to wake up innocent

members of the public in the early

hours of the morning.”

Marsden is certain of the benefits

of having aerial transport in policing

in this day and age. “I think that

having police aircraft available is a

godsend at times,” he said. “I have

been in this job for nearly 26 years

and I know for a fact that there have

been many cases I have worked on

that we could have brought to a

swift and satisfactory conclusion,

that we simply were not able to

without this resource.

“I think that the public may

sometimes come to the conclusion

that it’s just an expensive toy. This

is far from the truth as the aircraft

forms an important part of the

overall fight against crime and

disorder in the county. Tasked and

managed properly it is an invaluable

asset.” He concluded: “With the

nature of policing now we can help

gather the intelligence and we act as

a command and control platform.”