Active May 1975 - Present Branch Victoria Police | Country Australia Garrison/HQ Essendon Airport | |
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Role Law enforcement
Search and Rescue Helicopter 3 x AS365 Dauphin
1 x EC135 T2+ | ||
The Victoria Police Air Wing is the police aviation unit of the Victoria Police operating rotary wing aircraft in metropolitan Melbourne and providing a service to the whole of Victoria. In 2016, it was announced that new helicopters will be purchased and also an aeroplane. In 2017, the air ambulance service ceased with Ambulance Victoria releasing a helicopter for dedicated police duty.
Contents
History
The Air Wing was formed in 1975 after members of the Victoria Police Aero Club demonstrated to Victoria Police and government the potential of utilising aviation assets for policing roles. The first operational flight was on 22 May 1975 of a fixed wing aircraft. The Air Wing initially leased single engine and twin engine fixed wing aircraft. Various planes were operated including the Aero Commander 500S/Shrike Commander and the PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain. The last planes operated by the Air Wing were two twin engine Aero Commander. The government did not renew the three year lease and it expired on 30 June 1993. Approximately 95% of all flights had been for transportation. The government instead provided Victoria Police with access to the existing government charter service by Victorian Airlines. In 2005, the Office of Police Integrity recommended that Victoria Police have fixed wing aircraft for the urgent deployment of specialist police to regional Victoria. In 2016, it was announced that one fixed wing aircraft would be purchased.
In 1976, the first helicopter pilot joined the Air Wing. In 1977, the Air Wing conducted a six week evaluation trial of flying regular helicopter patrols. In 1978, the Air Wing leased a Hughes 500D helicopter conducting night time operations. In the same year, a decision was made to purchase a helicopter. In 1979, the Air Wing purchased a twin-engined Aérospatiale SA365C1 Dauphin 2 (VH-PVF), the first of its kind in Australia, with another two former VIP aircraft purchased in 1986 from the Romanian Government (VH-PVA and VH-PVK). On Sunday, 9 August 1987, Air 495 (VH-PVA, the Air Ambulance) was hit by gunfire during its part in the Hoddle Street massacre, and was forced to land in a nearby park.
A single-engined Aérospatiale AS350B Squirrel was added to the fleet in 1988 for routine operations such as surveillance and traffic patrol in the country areas of Victoria, as well as pilot training duties.
In 1996 police helicopter services began to be outsourced and the helicopters sold to Lloyd Helicopters of Australia (now CHC Helicopters), with the aircraft and their maintenance being leased back. Pilots and tactical flight officers (TFO) continue to be provided by the Victoria Police. From 2001 the Air Wing began to re-equip with new aircraft provided by CHC Helicopters, with the "much loved" SA365C1 models being replaced by their more powerful and much upgraded derivative, the AS365N3 Dauphin.
Along with the 3 new Dauphin helicopters, the Squirrel has also been replaced with a new twin-engined Eurocopter EC135 T2+ that fulfills the same role. The two engines of the EC135 means it is now able to safely operate over urban areas where the single-engined Squirrel was limited or excluded. While the new aircraft have much greater capabilities over the previous generation, such as HD Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR), LogiMap moving map software and Night Vision Goggles (NVG), the new aircraft are also significantly quieter, an important feature when operating over urban areas. In February 2009, the Air Wing moved into new, larger facilities at Essendon Airport that allowed them to be co-located with Air Ambulance Victoria, with whom they had a partnership, and their Bell 412 specialist aeromedical helicopter.
In 2011, AS365N3 Dauphin VH-PVH assisted the Western Australia Police with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2011 CHOGM 2011 held in Perth.
In 2016, it was announced that 3 new helicopters will be purchased with funding of $63 million (includes an aeroplane) to replace the aging Dauphin fleet.
Air Ambulance Victoria Partnership
The Victoria Police Air Wing had a partnership with Air Ambulance Victoria (AAV) from 1986 to 2017 to provide a 24-hour emergency air ambulance capability utilising one of the AS365N3 Dauphin helicopters. This aircraft call sign Air 495 was fitted out for the aeromedical role. The partnership covered joint operations and joint use of the aeromedical Dauphin so it could be utilised for police roles when not required for evacuation, as well as providing a replacement Dauphin helicopter while it is receiving maintenance. This co-operation was aided by having the two organisations sharing facilities at Essendon Airport.
In January 2017, Ambulance Victoria entered into service the last of five new AgustaWestland AW139 helicopters with it to be based at Essendon replacing the service provided by the Air Wing AS365N3 Dauphin helicopters. The primary air ambulance helicopter will now become a dedicated police helicopter and it and the back up reconfigured from aeromedical.
Roles
The Air Wing undertake a wide variety of roles including: