Jetson ONE eVTOL patrol at Florida Polytechnic University, Digi Mart USA News: Florida Polytechnic University says its campus is about to have what it calls America’s first flying police officer. The department’s Jetson ONE, nicknamed Astro, is not on patrol yet, but its chief says the FAA has signed off and the aircraft only needs its final paperwork.
The idea grew out of the university’s STEM focus. “We’re at a STEM university, surrounded by faculty and students who are studying and developing the technologies of the future,” Police Chief Aaron Murray said.
The university launched an aerospace engineering degree this fall, and students and faculty plan to use Astro’s flight data for research and senior design projects.
The university unveiled the aircraft late last month. The name Astro comes from the family dog in The Jetsons, the 1960s Hanna-Barbera cartoon.
The aircraft is a standard Jetson ONE, essentially a large multi-rotor drone with a seat. It uses eight electric motors, a joystick for steering and a ballistic parachute for emergencies.
Jetson quotes a top speed of 63 mph (102 km/h) and about 20 minutes of flight per charge.
Murray said Astro will not replace the department’s patrol cars or drones, but will be one more tool for certain situations. He listed quickly assessing an emergency, reaching places that are hard to access by car, delivering critical supplies and helping other agencies through mutual aid.
“We’re not planning to fly it around campus every day just for the sake of flying it,” he said. “We want to be thoughtful about when and how we use it.”
Pilots are in short supply. For now, the department’s entire air wing is its chief.
Jetson’s announcement referred to trained officers in the plural, but Murray said he is the only one who has completed the training the company requires. “The plan is to train additional officers so we can build that capability within our team,” he said.
Murray said the FAA team assigned to the technology has approved the department to begin law enforcement operations once its final registration paperwork arrives, and another branch of the agency is still processing that registration. The Jetson ONE is sold in the US as an ultralight, which requires no pilot’s license but can only be flown for sport or recreation.
The FAA told the publisher the department intends to fly Astro under Part 91 as a Public Aircraft Operation, the framework government agencies use for their own flights.
Astro is not the first eVTOL used by police. Dubai Police began training officers on a Hoversurf hoverbike in 2018, and Jetson tested two ONEs with Poland’s mountain rescue service last year, reaching the 3,973-ft (1,211-m) summit of Mt.
Luban in under four minutes. A Jetson ONE flew demonstrations at the UP.Summit at Kennedy Space Center on November 7 and 8. Murray said the department is in no rush.
“Safety is our top priority,” he said. “We’re taking the time to become familiar with Astro, understand its limitations and develop the procedures we’ll need before incorporating it into regular operations.”
