County Councilmembers Marilyn Balcombe, Sidney Katz, and Dawn Luedtke will be hosting a community meeting where officers from the Montgomery County Police Department will share success stories about the Drone as First Responder program in Wheaton and Silver Spring, and discuss its expansion into Gaithersburg.
The meeting will take place at Gaithersburg High School on June 26th from 6:30pm-8pm (additional info in the graphic below). Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) Special Operations Division has been conducting Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) training in Gaithersburg and Germantown in recent months in preparation of expanding the program up county.
MCPD launched the first Drone as First Responder Program in Silver Spring in 2023 and second in Wheaton in March 2024, stating that it has “demonstrated to be a valuable asset helping officers with increased response times, decision making, de-escalation and staffing shortages.
Per MCPD: “The Drone as First Responder program leverages Raven’s capabilities to reach the scene of a call for service, either before or in conjunction with patrol officers. This innovative approach aims to revolutionize emergency response by offering a real-time aerial perspective and strategic insights.
Raven’s operational objectives include:
- Assisting in the assessment of scenes and circumstances before officers arrive.
- Providing essential tactical information and situational awareness to enhance response safety.
- Contributing to the de-escalation of situations and improvement of overall response times.
- Addressing staffing shortages and assisting public safety efforts.”
