Denver Police Evaluating Drone as First Responder Technology

Denver Police Evaluating Drone as First Responder Technology

Published on December 12, 2025

Preliminary Pilot Program Data Demonstrates Measurable Successes

Denver - Friday, December 12, 2025 - The Denver Police Department (DPD) has launched a pilot program evaluating cutting-edge Drone as First Responder (DFR) technology designed to improve response times and provide real-time situational awareness during emergency calls to enhance community and officer safety.

"Drone as First Responder technology is trending nationally as a significantly beneficial tool for law enforcement," said Denver Police Cyber Bureau Commander Clifford Barnes. "The drones can be launched within seconds and typically arrive on-scene of a call for service before patrol officers, providing critical information that can lead to safer response and successful outcomes."

Unlike passive surveillance systems, the DFR program is strictly responsive - enabling an officer to respond as a remote first responder.

How It Works:

Two Denver Police DFR pilots monitor incoming calls for service and assess factors such as outdoor locations, priority classification, reports involving weapons, in-progress incidents, or any incident factors for which the pilots believe a DFR response could provide beneficial information to responding officers.

When a DFR pilot selects a call for service for DFR response, the pilot launches the drone and monitors its flight by keeping its camera angled at the horizon until arriving at the scene. Once on location, the pilot positions the drone and its camera to assess the situation and relays critical information to dispatchers and officers on the ground.

Early Successes:

Since launching the pilot program on October 16, 2025, the pilot program has already shown measurable impact:

• DFR drones have been deployed to 215 calls for service (through December 8th) including, but not limited to: robberies, burglaries, assaults, fights, weapons-related offenses, narcotics-related reports, and more.
• Over 80% of the time, drones arrive first on scene to incidents to which they respond
• In more than 30% of calls to which they respond, the DFR pilots determine that no patrol response is needed, allowing officers to be redirected to higher-priority incidents
• In 95% of the missions they fly, the pilots assess that they've provided critical information to officers on the ground
• Using the DFR drones, the pilots have helped locate suspects, clear calls without officer deployment, and reduce wait times for service

The Denver Police Department DFR team has experienced numerous situations in which the technology has enhanced community and officer safety.

"The DFR drones provide an advantageous view from above, allowing the pilots to determine whether a subject is armed or is attempting to evade or hide from officers so we can help prevent officers from walking into a dangerous situation," said Denver Police DFR Team Sergeant Brent Kohls. "Sometimes, the initial assessment dictates a slower and safer response to the scene by patrol officers, and the information can help officers determine the safest way to approach a subject and de-escalate the situation through greater situational awareness."

"One of my highest priorities is reducing response times to meet the needs and expectations of our community," said Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas. "Leveraging emerging technologies like Drone as First Responder platforms will help us to achieve quicker response times, along with officer hiring and retention strategies and data-based officer deployment strategies."

As the DFR pilot program continues, DPD is committed to transparency, responsible use, and leveraging technology to better serve the community. The Department is developing a public-facing dashboard providing information about DFR flights and flight paths, with the goal of publishing the dashboard as soon as possible.

Pilot Program Details:

• DPD is currently evaluating the Skydio Drone as First Responder system
• This is a zero-dollar pilot program contracted through March of 2026
• The pilot program includes two Skydio X10 drones (outdoor use only) and two docking stations installed on the roof of the Denver Police Administration building at 1331 Cherokee St.
• The drones are operating within a two nautical mile radius of this location
• The two drone pilots are Denver Police officers who are FAA certified to operate drones
• On average, DPD is responding to six calls for service per day with the DFR drones
• The average number of daily flights is limited by:
• Utilizing only two DFR drones
• A total flight time of less than 30 minutes due to battery capacity
• Charging time of approximately 40-45 minutes between flights

Note: DPD is exploring other DFR platforms, including the Flock Aerodome platform. A contract has been signed for a zero-dollar Flock Aerodome pilot program, but a timeframe for obtaining and installing the equipment has not yet been determined. Denver Police will not use the automated license plate reader capability of the Flock Aerodome system during the pilot program evaluation.

Additional resources:

B-roll of the Skydio DFR pilot program can be viewed here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iRRZBt9mwU8M46IhVx0BhE1zCitjy-Lv/view?usp=sharing

The Denver Police policy regarding Drone as First Responder technology can be found in section 119.09 -- Unmanned Aircraft Systems in the Denver Police Operations Manual.

• Police Department