If you saw some activity from the Red Deer police helicopter this morning between 10:30 and 11 over the Red Deer airport, fear not, there was no bad guys in the area, it was simply the Red Deer police showing off one of their best crime fighting tools, their helicopter affectionately known as Mike Poppa Poppa.

The name comes from its call sign of MPP, which turns into Mike Poppa Poppa when verbally identified through the RCMP's phonetic alphabet.

Mike Poppa Poppa is used in various crime fighting scenarios, including tracking down stolen vehicles and suspects attempting to flee from police, and they also offer their support in dozens of important public health and safety incidences throughout Red Deer.

Superintendent Ken Foster with the Red Deer RCMP was on hand this morning to show off Mike Poppa Poppa, and he talks about some of the important crime fighting techniques the helicopter is used in.

"When you have a crime scene, it gives you a tremendous aerial view of that crime scene, and it paints a picture. Or it could be something like a serious motor vehicle collision scene, and getting an aerial view of that will help the investigators piece together what has happened...and when our emergency response teams are deployed in very high risk situations, whether it be an armed and barricaded individual, a hostage taking, or something along those lines, being able to provide that picture from the sky to the people on the ground doing that dangerous work, is certainly very beneficial."

Foster says the helicopter also helps by striking fear into the hearts of fleeing criminals, as it's much harder to escape police when Mike Poppa Poppa is tracking you from above.

 

(RCMP flight officer Jason Wells demonstrating the police helicopter camera.)