HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. - The Huntington Beach Police Department (HBPD) is launching a Drone as First Responder (DFR) program to deploy drones to emergency scenes in under two minutes.
What we know:
According to police, the new DFR program will use three American-made Skydio X10 drones launched from automated stations across the city.
These drones are operated by licensed officers from the department's Real-Time Crime Center and are equipped with thermal imaging, high-resolution cameras, and GPS tracking.
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The drones can autonomously navigate to an address before a pilot takes over to monitor the situation.
The program is strictly for emergency response and is not for surveillance, police said.
What they're saying:
Huntington Beach Mayor Pat Burns said the program is about public safety and gives the department "a real advantage" by putting "eyes on a scene faster than ever before."
Police Chief Eric Parra emphasized the reactive nature of the program, stating, "We are not flying around surveilling neighborhoods. These drones only launch when a verified call for service comes in, and only for that incident."
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Lieutenant Chris Nesmith called the program a "force multiplier," explaining that "one pilot can manage multiple drones remotely, provide live intel across the city, and reserve in-person response for where it’s truly needed."
Detective Taylor Davoren, an FAA-certified drone pilot, compared the intuitive controls to "an Xbox controller" and noted that a recent demo helped guide officers to an attempted car break-in, which "gave us suspect and vehicle descriptions right away."
By the numbers:
The DFR program is expected to reduce emergency response times by over 50%.
By providing an immediate view of a scene, the drones can confirm when a response isn’t necessary, allowing officers to remain available for higher-priority calls.
The HBPD estimates that up to 25% of service calls could be resolved without dispatching an officer while maintaining public safety.
The Source: Information for this story is from the Huntington Beach Police Department.