Northumbria Police Authority this afternoon (Monday March 31) gave notice that it is backing plans to reduce the North East Air Support Unit to one helicopter.

At present the three north east forces contribute to the running of two aircraft – one based at Newcastle the other at Durham Tees Valley airport.

The decision by Northumbria Police Authority is based upon a detailed analysis of what it is efficiently required for.

Chair of Northumbria Police Authority, Councillor Mick Henry, said, “The nature of crime has changed in recent years and there has been a decline in vehicle related crime.  Developments in policing techniques mean that there are now many different, more efficient and effective ways for officers on the ground to deal with incidents, such as car pursuits, where a helicopter would traditionally have been used.

“This decision to use just one helicopter in future has been made in the best interests of local people’s safety after careful consideration of how best public funds can support policing this region, using all of the tools available.  However, we will continue to work with the consortium’s partners to plan new arrangements for 2009 to 10 and beyond.”

Currently both helicopters are available 24 hours per day at two bases, costing £3.47 million per year.  Analysis shows that, of the 48 flying hours available per day between the two, both helicopters are in the air less than a total of seven hours.   Eighty-five percent of their time is spent on standby.

Early assessment shows that the cost of maintaining just one helicopter is £1.98 million per year, saving £1.49 million that could be redirected back towards other policing services in the region.

Chief constable of Northumbria Police, Mike Craik, said, “We must ensure that we are providing the most effective and efficient support for frontline policing. "While we will always ensure that we provide effective helicopter support to frontline policing, there is clearly no longer an operational need for two helicopters. The fact that they stand idle for 85 per cent of the time clearly indicates that there are more effective ways of providing this important frontline resource."

Less than five percent of the flying hours used by Northumbria Police deals with critical incidents.  A critical incident is defined as one where the effectiveness of the police response is likely to have a significant impact on the confidence of the victim, their family, and/or the community.

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