News, deep dives, and analysis — every Drone as First Responder story, newest first.
St. Louis is getting six police drones, and how the city approved them says as much as the program itself. On Wednesday its Board of Police Commissioners signed off on a Drone as First Responder program built on BRINC hardware, racing a funding deadline that had Mayor Cara Spencer calling the process rushed. The drones…
The Metro Nashville Police Department started flying drones over the Madison precinct on Tuesday, May 26, the first day of a Drone as First Responder trial that will run up to 45 flight days. Three Skydio aircraft are involved, on loan from the manufacturer at no cost to the city. Four FAA-certified officers operate the…
The Dallas Police Department’s new Drone as First Responder program made its first save on Thursday afternoon, one day after the program went live. A man was walking into rush-hour traffic on Interstate 45, a Skydio drone reached him before any patrol unit could, and a uniformed crew walked him off the freeway alive. The…
The Dallas Police Department officially launched its Drone as First Responder program on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, deploying eight remotely piloted Skydio aircraft from Dallas Fire-Rescue stations across the city. Each drone covers a two-mile radius from its base, with operators working from the department’s Fusion/Real Time Crime Center. The first operational deployment landed the…
The Fulshear Police Department launched a Drone as First Responder program on April 6, 2026, and the platform doing the work is the DJI Matrice 350 RTK rather than the U.S.-built Skydio X10 that has become the default for many other municipal DFR programs. The choice matters because it cuts against the broader U.S. public…
Fresno Police arrested two suspects last week after a Skydio X10 drone tracked their getaway car from a Dick’s Sporting Goods store in Northwest Fresno, marking another high-visibility win for the city’s recently launched Drone as First Responder program, as reported by ABC 30. According to Fresno PD, the case unfolded near Shaw and Valentine…
Laredo Police Department officers arrested a 34-year-old man after he burglarized two vehicles early on May 6, with the RAVEN program drones playing a key role in locating him while he hid in nearby brush, as reported by LMT Online. The incident highlights the growing use of small tactical drones for rapid suspect apprehension in…
Leander, Texas, is putting two Skydio drones on actual 911 calls for two weeks to decide whether the city needs a permanent Drone as First Responder program, as CBS Austin reported. The trial runs May 4-15 and deploys the aircraft to real incidents, not simulations. A Fast-Growing City With a Response Problem Leander isn’t a…
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