Most pilots will tell you they enjoy their jobs. This is particularly true when the work involves making a positive difference in the community. Flying for state patrol is one of these flying jobs. These flying law enforcement officers pilot helicopters and airplanes in support of troopers on the ground.
But you don’t just walk off the street and get hired. For most flying LEOs, their career in the air division begins on the street as a state trooper.
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This requirement throws some people, said Washington State Patrol (WSP) Lieutenant Krista Greydanus. The WSP allowed FLYING to spend a morning with the unit learning about the type of flying it does.
Greydanus joined WSP after being furloughed from her job as a pilot at Horizon Air. She graduated from the law enforcement academy around the same time the airline was recalling its pilots and decided to focus on a career in law enforcement. Greydanus spent several years as a trooper in Seattle, a position she enjoyed because it allowed her to make a difference, before there was an opening in the aviation division.
“This is not a job for time building,” Greydanus said. “When someone expresses an interest in the job, I ask them, ‘Are you OK with being a trooper for a while?’”
That’s important, she stressed, because the air division works in support of the troopers on the ground, and it is important for the pilots to understand the procedures the ground troopers follow in order to work better as a team.
To be competitive in the hiring process, candidates should have at least a commercial pilot certificate. The more ratings and hours of experience the better, according to Greydanus, adding that all WSP candidates are required to
attend the WSP academy. When a position comes open in the aviation division, they may apply. If they are selected, they attend FlightSafety to acquire the needed additional aviation training such as ATP certification, as well as recurrent training.
The Fleet and Mission
Washington State Patrol has a total of seven pilots to cover 71,362 square miles. The aircraft include three Cessna 182s, two Cessna 206s equipped with Forward Looking Infrared cameras (FLIR), and a King Air 200 that is used for transporting the governor and other state officials.
The mission of the WSP is to provide support for law enforcement, traffic patrol, and discourage dangerous driving. One way that is done is by spotting the aggressive drivers from the air and reporting their location to troopers who can then intercept the suspect driver—hopefully before someone gets hurt. There is a lot of coordination and communication involved, as I was soon to find out on a “fly along.”
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WSP headquarters is a boxy 1930s-era hangar located on the east side of the airport. The floor of the hangar is painted white, and you get the impression you could do surgery on it without risk of infection. Half of the space is devoted to aircraft maintenance—most of it done in house. The aircraft are kept meticulously clean. Although they are several years old and have gone through multiple engine changes, they look as if they just rolled out of the Cessna factory.
From the outside, the first indication that the single-engine aircraft have a special purpose are the LoJack antennas affixed to their bellies. This helps WSP locate stolen cars—and there are a lot of them—in the Seattle area, in particular Hondas and Kias. The aircraft are also equipped with vortex generators to allow better controllability and performance at slower airspeeds.
Routine patrols involve flights of three to five hours at an altitude of approximately 1,500 feet msl or more depending on terrain and airspace. The mixture is leaned for better economy. The aircraft fly so the freeway or whatever is being observed is on the left side of the aircraft because that is where the pilot sits, and in the 206, the FLIR is attached to the left wing. The camera is usually pointed down. The pilot has an iPhone to use as a screen for orientation mounted just above eye level on the left side of the cockpit, while in the back seat the tactical flight officer (TFO) controls the FLIR and handles coordination with troopers.
The Pilot and TFO
For the demonstration flight, Trooper Anson Statema was the pilot, while Trooper Camron Iverson was the TFO. They have distinct responsibilities. The pilot has to maintain situational awareness, observe the FARs, airspace, air traffic, and comply with ATC, while assisting the TFO when needed and keeping the aircraft in a position so the camera is pointed where it needs to be.
The TFO is typically a trooper from the field who works in a reserve status. The TFO is not necessarily a pilot. According to Greydanus, the TFO is the most important part of the law enforcement missions, as they are the officers who provide probable cause to the units on the ground. The TFO is in charge of operating the camera, communicating on the LE radios to the ground units and dispatch, coordinating with the pilot to let them know what they need for any particular incident, ensuring evidence is being recorded, and being the eyes in the sky looking for dangerous driving below.
Trooper Anson Statema carefully orbited over the signal location and the stolen car until ground support troops could arrive. [Courtesy: Meg Godlewski]
The Fly Along
It was a typical gray overcast morning in Olympia, Washington, but the ceilings were high enough for a flight. After a thorough preflight inspection of the Cessna 206H, we saddled up. Part of the preparation for flight includes making sure the FLIR is properly calibrated. With the aircraft engine running, the pilot and TFO watch the camera as it goes through a series of gyrations to confirm it is operating correctly.
The WSP call sign is “Smokey,” a slang term for law enforcement derived from an association of the style of hat worn by some state troopers that is the same as that worn by advertising icon Smokey Bear. Statema obtained the ATIS and called for a taxi clearance. A few minutes later, Smokey was cleared for takeoff from Runway 35.
The 1999 Cessna 206 with its Lycoming IO-540 is a utility hauler and had no trouble getting us into the air. It is louder than the Cessna 172s I usually fly, and I was thankful for my noise-canceling headset. That’s the main complaint the WSP hears from people on the ground—the aircraft are noisy when they are in orbit at 1,000 feet or so above terrain, but that is where they need to be to do the job.
We headed north following the freeway. Statema leveled us off at 1,500 feet and configured and trimmed the aircraft for level flight, then called my attention to the position of the yoke. Although we were in straight and level flight as referenced to the outside horizon, some aileron correction was necessary because the FLIR weighs 60 pounds, and the weight makes the left wing drop unless the pilot holds in a correction. Statema allowed me to try it. For those unfamiliar, the Cessna 206 is heavier on the controls than the Cessna 172, and you definitely will feel it in the arm that manipulates the yoke.
The aircraft is equipped with a LoJack to help locate stolen vehicles. The black object attached under the left wing is the camera. [Courtesy: Washington State Patrol]
Tools of the Trade
The aircraft are outfitted with special radios that enable the WSP to communicate with other law enforcement agencies. This comes in very handy when a situation that requires a joint effort is encountered.
The one that caught my attention was the one labeled LoJack. Its purpose is to help track down stolen cars. LoJack is a GPS device that enables the car to be tracked by law enforcement, similar to the way smartphones can be tracked in “lost” mode.
When it was activated, the LoJack began beeping. There is a discreet code displayed. A readout on the device then shows the signal getting stronger or weaker, which helps the pilot determine which way to fly. There is some discussion between Iverson and Statema, then Iverson contacts dispatch on the ground to run the code to see if the vehicle has been reported stolen. The code comes back to a silver Honda reported stolen.
For the next few minutes we orbit. Statema watches the LoJack readout and determines when the aircraft is getting closer to the car while Iverson coordinates with the ground units. We remain over the location until the ground unit reaches the car.
“Someone is getting their car back,” Statema said with a grin. And we headed back to the airport.
Hiring at Washington State Patrol
Once hired, an applicant becomes a trooper cadet and will attend the WSP academy followed by in-the-field training. Upon graduation, cadets receive their commission and become troopers.
To be able to work any WSP mission, pilots are required to have their SE commercial certificate and instrument rating. In the past, the aviation section has brought in troopers who did not have any certificates or ratings and conducted in-house training, but WSP prefers the commercial/instrument so it can start training them on WSP-specific missions right away.
The agency prefers a minimum of one year on the ground as a trooper prior to being able to apply for a position within the aviation section, but any additional experience is beneficial to the transportation missions.
Missions are conducted in a standardized way much like the airlines. The pilot operates the aircraft and the copilot (nonflying pilot) handles radios and checklists, and assists the pilot flying as needed. The duties of the flying pilot and nonflying pilot are rotated.
This feature first appeared in the May Issue 958 of the FLYING print edition.
