Durham Regional Police will be getting a new helicopter soon to replace their aging Air1 unit.
Currently their eye in the sky, lending support to officers on the ground, is in its 25th year of service and needs to be replaced.
Chief Peter Moreira spoke at the Oshawa Airport on Friday saying the new helicopter will be a great addition to combatting crime and covering one of the largest regions in the GTA – estimated at 2,500-square kilometres.
“Air support serves as a powerful deterrent against Organized Crime groups that have been ruthlessly targeting vehicles and carrying out carjackings across the GTA,” said Moreira. “This investment will ensure we will continue to provide this essential service reliably and enhance the service delivery.”
Moreira said the helicopter is also an “invaluable tool” when trying to locate “missing persons” in a rural area not always accessible by vehicles on the ground.
The new chopper, which is part of the new Joint Air Support Unit, will be able to assist officers on the ground faster and be better equipped to combat crime tracking impaired drivers, street racing, carjackings and auto thefts that plague the province.
It will also add to officer safety.
Exactly when the new helicopter will take flight is not yet known.
Moreira said there must first be a procurement period and a decision must be made on which type of helicopter should replace Air1 – a Bell 206 Jet Ranger.
Moreira used a perfect example of the utilization of Air1 by pointing to a recent apprehension of a motorist who allegedly evaded a police stop in a stolen car in Oshawa on Sept. 14.
Air1 followed the suspect for a short distance while officers in vehicles followed on the ground, then contained an area and apprehended the accused.
The 20-year-old Oshawa man was allegedly found to be in possession of a handgun with an overcapacity drum magazine.
In 2023, there was a 35% increase in vehicle thefts in Durham Region.
Back in June, the provincial government stepped in to provide five state-of-the-art helicopters at an estimated $134 million over a three-year-period to cops in Durham, Peel and Halton Regions, as well as two new helicopters going to the OPP – the H135 model, also known as EuroCopters, which are employed by police services in Europe.
Those two OPP helicopters will ready for use by Toronto and Ottawa Police when needed for assistance.
An officer who regularly mans Air1 said the newer helicopters will be faster and be able to carry more equipment and personnel to combat crime and possibly assist in finding missing persons.
Ontario’s Solicitor General Michael Kerzner, on hand at the announcement, said there are over 2,000 police helicopters combatting crime throughout North America.
“And that’s why I’m was proud to stand beside our Premier (Doug Ford) to announce this past June our Joint Air Support Unit,” said Kerzner. “And a brand new helicopter that will be owned and operated by Durham Regional Police Service.”
The Durham Air Support Unit currently consists of one full-time pilot, three part-time pilots, two full-time Tactical Flight Officers and five part-time TFOs.