Calif. Police Department Expands Drone Program to Assist Officers

Since late March, Fresno police drones equipped with infrared and night vision have assisted on hundreds of calls as part of the department's Drone as First Responder program.

By Nick Fenley

Source The Fresno Bee

April 16, 2026

2 min read

What to know

The Fresno Police Department has launched a Drone as First Responder program, deploying three strategically placed drones to assist police officers on calls across the city.
The drones provide real‑time video and radio intelligence to responding police officers, helping identify suspects, locate missing persons and resolve some calls without requiring ground units to respond.
Since launching March 23, the drones have assisted with 275 service calls, identifying people or vehicles of interest before officers arrived on nearly half of those calls.

Fresno police drone as part of first-responder program — Fresno, CA, police officials say new first‑responder drones are providing real‑time video, helping identify suspects, locating missing persons and clearing some calls without sending officers.

The Fresno Police Department is now part of the Drone as First Responder program, and officers can now use three drones docked at different parts of the city to assist with calls.

Police chief Mindy Casto said the department has seen great results deploying standard drones since 2019, though first-responder drones go the extra mile.

“The pilot provides real-time information over the radio to officers in the field that may be responding. Officers in the field can also tune in to the video themselves through their car computer or their department-issued cellphones,” Casto said.

The drones are primarily operated from the department’s downtown headquarters, though they can fly autonomously or be controlled from other areas as well.

With appropriate training, pilots can operate multiple drones at a time.

Casto said the drones can be an asset in helping to identify suspects or find missing persons. They can even clear calls, such as a traffic hazard that resolves itself, without an officer visiting the scene.

Equipped with infrared and night vision, the drones can lock onto vehicles of interest and make announcements by relaying recorded messages. Lieutenant Robert Dewey works with the drones and said the announcement feature is handy for matters such as clearing unhoused people from private property.

The drones are waterproof and can operate in temperatures up to 122 degrees, and in 35 mile-per-hour winds. Dewey said the drones have a fly and charge time of 27 minutes, though officers can do a “hot swap” and change batteries in the field.

There are currently three first-responder drones serving Fresno. Two are placed atop the department’s northeast and northwest stations, as those areas experience the most retail theft, Casto said. A third drone is placed on headquarters and will primarily serve the downtown area.

The program launched on March 23rd, and the new drones have helped on 275 service calls so far. On 148 of those calls, drone pilots were able to identify a person or vehicle of interest before ground units arrived. About 20% of the calls were cleared without ground officers needing to respond.

“It really is just kind of the next wave of law enforcement,” Dewey said of the first-responder drones.

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