January 2023 | Cobb Co Sheriff's Office (GA) Drone Program
Airworx is proud to recognize and honor the Cobb County Sheriff's Office (Georgia) Drone Team as our January 2023 Agency Success Story!
CCSO is fairly new to the drone / UAS world. In early 2022, their drone the was established with two DJI M300 Mission-Ready systems. Less than a year later they now have 6 systems total, including their 4 new Airworx Avata Tactical Go-Command.
Recently a success story was released regarding SGT Abbott - using his new Tactical Avata system in a mutual aid scenario where ground robots and another purpose-built tactical drone failed.
Read more here >>>
Our local Police Department was engaged in a standoff with an armed suspect. Sergeant Abbott, one of our licensed drone pilots and a SWAT Operator, was on duty that evening and responded to the scene. Upon arrival he informed the police SWAT Commander that he had a DJI Avata with him capable of clearing the house. The commander devised a plan to throw a flash-bang in the front yard of the home and deploy their ground robot. If the robot failed, they would deploy their tactical interior drone. In the event of a failure on both, they would utilize Sergeant Abbott and his DJI Avata. After multiple attempts to make contact with the suspect, the local Police Department attempted to enter the residence with a reconnaissance robot. Their robot lost signal in the doorway of the residence, rendering it useless. They then attempted to fly a tactical entry drone into the residence, but were unsuccessful, as their tactical drone was unable to obtain any signal and launch.
The SWAT Commander ask Sergeant Abbott if he could use his drone. He powered up the Airworx Go-Command Case for their SWAT Commander to observe the drone footage. Sergeant Abbott launched the DJI Avata from behind cover of the Bearcat about two houses away and entered into the garage which led into the main structure.
During Sergeant Abbott’s initial sweep of the residence, Sgt Abbott was able to locate evidence suggesting the suspect was still inside the home. Sergeant Abbott brought the DJI Avata back out of the residence to insert a fresh battery before continuing further in the house. The battery swap was performed in under one minute to the amazement of the SWAT Commander.
Sergeant Abbott continued to sweep the structure and ultimately located the suspect in a back bedroom. Upon seeing the DJI Avata with the bright Airworx LED mounted light system, the suspect placed his hands in the air and appeared frightened of the drone. Sergeant Abbott flew around behind the suspect and began to fly towards him with short quick movements to drive him towards the door. He continued to drive the suspect to the door and outside the home where he was met by SWAT Operators and taken into custody without any further incident.
Solid work, SGT Abbott and team!
There is no doubt that the use of the DJI Avata prevented further conflict on scene and protected the lives of not only the officers, but the suspect as well. The use of the DJI Avata allowed us to resolve the incident quickly without having to insert officers into the residence with and armed suspect and allowed the suspect to quickly receive medical treatment for his injury.
