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Meet Hampshire's new weapon in fire fighting
HAMPSHIRE'S fire and rescue
service has unveiled its latest
weapon in the fight against fires -
a remote-controlled model helicopter.
The high-performance helicopter - which
costs just under £15,000 - will be used to take
aerial pictures and video of ongoing fires to
allow firefighters see how severe they are and
how best to tackle them.
Measuring just 1.7 metres and weighing in at
6.8 kilograms, the helicopter can be flown out
to a distance of 500 metres from the pilot and
to a height of up to 400 feet for between 15 and
20 minutes.
Click here for a video of the helicopter in action
The goundbreaking project, the first in the
country, is the brainchild HFRS Urban Search
and Rescue technician and model helicopter
enthusiast Graham Libby.
Graham, who has been flying model helicopters
for fun for seven years, said: "The purpose
of the helicopter is to provide incident commanders
at larger fires with an overhead
view.
"It can hover in a stand-off position above
or to one side of the incident so they can see
how effective their resources are and if they
need to redeploy or call for backup.
"Previously the only way to get an aerial
shot was to use a hydraulic aerial platform
but they are often tied up fighting the fire.
"Having the helicopter is going to be a massive
help in cutting down the time it takes to tackle fires."
The state-of-the-art model is crammed full of
gadgets, including a ten-megapixel camera or a
top range video camera.
It also has the ability to hover at a set altitude
and position while it takes pictures.
Graham added: "When the helicopter has
reached a certain position, with the flick of a
switch I can activate the GPS hold function
which will keep it exactly over that position.
"The same can be done for altitude.
"It also has a very clever feature which
records its GPS position on takeoff.
"If radio signal is broken during the flight the
helicopter will automatically return to where it
took off from. The pilot can also activate this
feature if they lose sight of the helicopter in
heavy smoke."
The model helicopter, officially titled the
Carvec Kestrel Aerial observation and photography
platform, has already proven its worth
when it was deployed to a major fire at offices.
12:26pm Thursday 17th July 2008
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CommentPosted by: Wewullywinky on 1:52pm Thu 17 Jul 08
Now your having a laugh. They get up- set by being woken at 6am after having 8 hours sleep on station. Now they need remote control toys to keep them amused. Funny
Now your having a laugh. They get up- set by being woken at 6am after having 8 hours sleep on station. Now they need remote control toys to keep them amused. Funny
Posted by: Harry Remmington, New Forest on 2:31pm Thu 17 Jul 08
Manchester Police introduced the same idea a year ago called Dragon Flyer. Cost less than £3000.00 with a much higher video specification and crash proof guidence system.
Are HFS thick or just have too much money to waste on toys ?
Manchester Police introduced the same idea a year ago called Dragon Flyer. Cost less than £3000.00 with a much higher video specification and crash proof guidence system.
Are HFS thick or just have too much money to waste on toys ?
Posted by: Lowe and Behold, St Marys hotseat on 2:55pm Thu 17 Jul 08
Im sure someone will shoot it out of the sky.
Im sure someone will shoot it out of the sky.
Posted by: Simon on 4:41pm Thu 17 Jul 08
[quote][bold]Lowe and Behold[/bold] wrote:
Im sure someone will shoot it out of the sky.[/quote] Nah, I can't wait for the "pilot" to fly it too near a fire.....
Lowe and Behold wrote:
Im sure someone will shoot it out of the sky.
Nah, I can't wait for the "pilot" to fly it too near a fire.....
Posted by: Hose a on 5:56pm Thu 17 Jul 08
Now we know that firemen have toy choppers.
Now we know that firemen have toy choppers.
Posted by: Bob Jones, Soton on 7:47pm Thu 17 Jul 08
What a joke.
Posted by: paul b on 8:11pm Thu 17 Jul 08
No doubt the echo will run 15 more stories on this
No doubt the echo will run 15 more stories on this
Posted by: bob, pompey on 9:07pm Thu 17 Jul 08
[quote][bold]Bob Jones[/bold] wrote:
What a joke. [/quote] http://www.portsmout
h.co.uk/news/Helicop
ter-helps-firefighte
rs-save-West.4237246
.jp
took a while to find but i think the story says it all
Bob Jones wrote:
What a joke.
http://www.portsmout
h.co.uk/news/Helicop
ter-helps-firefighte
rs-save-West.4237246
.jp
took a while to find but i think the story says it all
Posted by: bob, pompey on 9:16pm Thu 17 Jul 08
[quote][bold]Harry Remmington[/bold] wrote:
Manchester Police introduced the same idea a year ago called Dragon Flyer. Cost less than £3000.00 with a much higher video specification and crash proof guidence system. Are HFS thick or just have too much money to waste on toys ?[/quote] Harry, the dragon flyer you refer to is in fact called the Micro-Drone and supplied by www.mwpower.co.uk
Its price tag is £41000 +vat and this is what Manchester Police purchased. How do I know this? Because I was at Netley Police College for the initial trials of this system.
Harry Remmington wrote:
Manchester Police introduced the same idea a year ago called Dragon Flyer. Cost less than £3000.00 with a much higher video specification and crash proof guidence system. Are HFS thick or just have too much money to waste on toys ?
Harry, the dragon flyer you refer to is in fact called the Micro-Drone and supplied by www.mwpower.co.uk
Its price tag is £41000 +vat and this is what Manchester Police purchased. How do I know this? Because I was at Netley Police College for the initial trials of this system.
Posted by: madfish, Gosport on 9:26am Sun 20 Jul 08
[quote][bold]Wewullywinky[/bold] wrote:
Now your having a laugh. They get up- set by being woken at 6am after having 8 hours sleep on station. Now they need remote control toys to keep them amused. Funny[/quote] Maybe you should try and join one of the best services in the world before making a cheap remark like that. Yes, our serving firefighters may have the advantage of sleep during stand-down, however, and I'm sure you would agree...better to have someone pulling your backside out of that burning building whom has had a little bit of sleep than someone whom has worked 15 hours straight with no rest...HFRS 24/7 keeping you safe!
Wewullywinky wrote:
Now your having a laugh. They get up- set by being woken at 6am after having 8 hours sleep on station. Now they need remote control toys to keep them amused. Funny
Maybe you should try and join one of the best services in the world before making a cheap remark like that. Yes, our serving firefighters may have the advantage of sleep during stand-down, however, and I'm sure you would agree...better to have someone pulling your backside out of that burning building whom has had a little bit of sleep than someone whom has worked 15 hours straight with no rest...HFRS 24/7 keeping you safe!
Posted by: Screwtop, 884-016 on 3:37am Thu 24 Jul 08
I've seen the MD too (not Dragonflyer). It has a low-res CCD lipstick camera (can't carry a proper HD comcorder), costs 3 or 4 times the Hampshire heli, certainly isn't crashproof, has a much less sophisticated failsafe system and - worst of all - it will blow away in wind > 12mph.
HFRS are pioneering the future here and I applaud their vision. This technology has the potential to save lives.
I've seen the MD too (not Dragonflyer). It has a low-res CCD lipstick camera (can't carry a proper HD comcorder), costs 3 or 4 times the Hampshire heli, certainly isn't crashproof, has a much less sophisticated failsafe system and - worst of all - it will blow away in wind > 12mph.
HFRS are pioneering the future here and I applaud their vision. This technology has the potential to save lives.
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