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Fairfax County’s first-responder drones arrived before officers in more than 70% of their first 100 missions, giving police an aerial view of emergencies in less than 90 seconds on average.

Police officials presented the early results of the “Drone as First Responder” pilot to the Board of Supervisors’ Safety and Security Committee on Feb. 24. Launched in fall 2025, the program deploys specially equipped drones to reported emergencies while officers travel to the scene.

Remote pilots operate the aircraft, and staff at the Real Time Crime Center relay live observations to responding officers. Assistant Police Chief Bob Blakely said the department ultimately wants drones moving even before a 911 call has ended.

The planned system could identify words such as “gun,” “shot” or “fire” during emergency calls and automatically recommend launching a drone.

Flying at altitudes of 200 to 400 feet, the drones carry thermal cameras, technology for navigating in near-total darkness, and either a spotlight or speaker.

Maj. Hudson Bull, who oversees the department’s technology integration projects, described a recent case involving a man accused of threatening people with a baseball bat. A drone maintained visual contact throughout the incident, allowing officers to plan a measured approach and take the man into custody without calling in additional resources.

The pilot is now in its second phase, which will add docking stations across the county. Police plan to operate from 18 locations selected using calls-for-service data. Each drone will have a flight range of about 2 miles from its base.

The program could eventually expand into a broader partnership with the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department. Blakely said early discussions with fire and rescue officials showed that aerial first responders could support both police operations and fire and medical emergencies.

Fairfax County has no local ordinance restricting these deployments. State law, however, generally limits warrantless use of unmanned aircraft to situations involving life safety, Blakely told supervisors.

Police hope future changes will allow drones to assist with additional crimes, including commercial burglaries. An aircraft positioned above a business could alert responding officers to a running vehicle behind the building or a person leaving through an exit, giving them more information before they arrive.