Gwinnett County Police Aviation unit manager, Lou Gregoire, stands with one of the unit’s helicopters at Gwinnett Airport at Briscoe Field in Lawrenceville after returning from duty.
(Photo Credit/Courtesy: David Welker)
LAWRENCEVILLE — For nearly 40 years, a different kind of police unit has patrolled Gwinnett County.
Its officers wear jumpsuits, helmets and headsets with microphones angled toward their lips. They hover 500 feet above the earth by day and 1,000 at night, keeping a watchful eye over crime-ridden neighborhoods and assisting officers working on the ground. They can get from the Lawrenceville airport to any edge of the county in less than 10 minutes, even in the worst of rush hour.
Their unit got started back in 1975, under the leadership of then-chief John Crunkleton.
“Aviation units were becoming recognized as a valuable tool in law enforcement,” explained Lou Gregoire, Gwinnett police’s current aviation manager. “The agencies that had any area to cover recognized they could cover that distance a lot faster and more safely than in a patrol car. An officer or two in the air in a helicopter can do the work of about five patrol cars.”
Those benefits are still seen today.
“Our helicopter is able to respond to incidents quickly and provide valuable intelligence, which improves the efficiency and safety of officers on the ground,” said Police Chief Charlie Walters, who has headed Gwinnett police for the last 11 years. “The aviation unit is a vital resource in delivering effective law enforcement services to the citizens of Gwinnett County.”
Of course, 39 years later, the way those services are delivered has changed a bit.
The unit began with a few “MASH-type helicopters” and Vietnam War-era pilots. For a few years, they even operated a twin-engine Cessna that was used to pick up prisoners who were wanted in Gwinnett, from other jurisdictions within 500 nautical miles (about 575 road miles).
Today, two more modern — though still more than 20-year-old — McDonald Douglas helicopters make up the division’s fleet. Constant maintenance and care keeps the aging machines up to the task. The handful of officers assigned to the unit at any given time now are often recreational pilots who are brought over from road duty.
Gregoire, who flew growing up and served as a mechanic in the United States Air Force, said police work is different at hundreds of feet above the ground, though some of the same principles apply.
“We don’t have to deal with people. Much more of a support role,” he said. But dealing with crime is “an instinct you develop over years of police work, and it transitions from the police car into the cockpit fairly well.”
With 430 square miles of territory to cover, the officers assigned to the air get plenty of time to exercise those skills. The unit typically flies every day and night. After dark, two officers are needed, one to fly and watch a screen showing video from night-vision cameras under the chopper, and another to communicate with other units on the radio.
Normally, Gregoire says, the pilots aid in missing person cases, dangerous warrant service and suspect chases. Not that the officers on the ground can’t handle it — they just can’t see as well.
“When you see from 500 feet, it’s not like an airplane where the detail is very small; you can see individuals walking their dog, you can see what kind of dog it is,” Gregoire said. “When somebody’s on the ground running from the police, you can see what kind of clothes they’re wearing.”
The visibility and speed are the two chief factors that make the unit valuable.
Letting criminals know Gwinnett County PD is watching is also important. The police department’s crime analysis team regularly sends over data on crime trends and “hot areas,” as the aviation manager puts it, and when not out on other calls, the aviation officers patrol those areas.
“That’s to stop the crimes just by being loitering in the air,” Gregoire said.
They also sometimes watch over major roadways for driving violations.
When they spot something abnormal, the aviation officers alert officers on the ground, who go and finish the job.
To some, the support role could make the workday seem less exciting or fulfilling for the officers hovering overhead than it is for those actually confronting suspects face-to-face and making arrests. But if Gregoire’s attitude is any indication, the unit is just fine working day-in-day-out giving assists to the troops on the ground, never getting the glory. They’re happy to be team players.
Plus, a helicopter is just a little more interesting than a police cruiser.
“It’s a magic carpet ride,” Gregoire said. “I can’t believe they let me do this everyday. I tell people I’m one of the five luckiest people in the department. I haven’t had to go to work since I came to aviation.”
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