The Ventura County Sheriff's Office has applied for a Certificate of Authorization (COA) through the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to allow training flights of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. The COA will only allow limited operation within a restricted unpopulated area for training and evaluation purposes only. The evaluations will take place in conjunction with Sheriff's Search and Rescue, the Ventura County Fire Department, and other public safety agencies.

The initial training flights will occur in the area of the Ventura River as well as portions of the Ventura County backcountry. Since the application has not yet been approved, actual flights may still be several months away.

The ultimate goal is to use the small UAV for critical life-saving efforts, such as locating missing persons and monitoring incidents where a hazardous condition exists.

The UAV being tested is known as the Qube (pictured below), and operates with four small rotors that allow it to take off vertically. It is battery powered and remote controlled. It can stay aloft for a maximum of 40 minutes on a single charge. The Qube has a built-in camera system, but is otherwise incapable of carrying any payload.
The Qube is manufactured by Aerovironment www.avinc.com, a local company based in Simi Valley.

Currently, the Sheriff's Office utilizes four Bell Huey helicopters for a variety of public safety purposes. One of the primary missions of our air unit is search and rescue. While the UAV will not replace our Aviation Unit, there are many circumstances that do not require a fully equipped helicopter. It is hoped that a UAV will assist with lifesaving operations at a significantly reduced cost to the taxpayer.

UAVs also have a critical use in the fire service for mapping and aerial observation during wildland and other fires.

In addition to the FAA guidelines, which restrict flights to 400 feet above ground level and below, the Sheriff's Office has developed its own policy to govern the use of the UAV for search and rescue purposes only. The FAA guidelines and the Sheriff's Office policy are available to the public. (The documents will be attached with the press release).

Again, the request to the FAA is for training purposes only to review if the UAV has a useful and practical application in Ventura County.

Public Safety Agencies to Evaluate Use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)
Date & Time: March 24, 2013
Units Responsible: Ventura County Sheriff's Office / Ventura County Fire Department
Media Release Date: Mar. 24, 2013
Follow-Up Contact: Captain Don Aguilar (805) 797-7349 / don.aguilar@ventura.org
Approved by: Sheriff Geoff Dean

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VENTURA COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE
Unmanned Aircraft System Policy

Title: Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Initial Test and Evaluation

Purpose: The purpose of the Ventura County Sheriff's Office Unmanned Aircraft Unit is to test and evaluate the small unmanned rotor type aircraft, known as the "Qube," produced by Aerovironment and leased to the Ventura County Sheriff's Office. The tests and evaluations will be conducted to determine the effectiveness of the system in response to public safety and search and rescue incidents.

Policy: The Qube UAS is capable of carrying small sensing (camera) equipment. The UAS and attached equipment will be operated by trained UAS pilots and observers. The operation of the UAS will be in accordance with all manufacturer's and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Certificate of Authorization (COA) guidelines. The minimum crew on all UAS flights will be a pilot and an observer.
The initial test and evaluations operations will take place at two rural locations in Ventura County listed in the FAA COA. The use of the UAS in any other areas of the County of Ventura is not authorized at this time. Should an exigent circumstance arise where the UAS would be the most appropriate tool to save life, an emergency COA shall be obtained from the FAA prior to deploying.

Factors to be considered prior to deployment are as follows:
 Weather (current and forecasted)
 Location
 Time of day
 Population density
 Suitable landing and takeoff locations Safety is the primary concern for all UASU members. The pilot is the final authority regarding the deployment of the UAS.

Pre-flight and post-flight inspections on the UAS will be conducted by the pilot before and after each flight. All flight hours will be tracked on the flight log and all inspections will be tracked on the UAS log.

Pilot and observer training will be conducted in accordance with the Unmanned Aircraft System Unit (UASU) Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). All training will be logged in the UASU team member training file.

Any imagery collected will be deleted unless State or Federal regulations mandate retention. Images determined to be evidence in a criminal case will be retained per Ventura County Sheriff's Office policy.

Personal use of the Ventura County Sheriff's Office UAS is prohibited.