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“U.S. PARK POLICE AVIATION UNIT CELEBRATES 25 YEARS OF SERVICE TO OUR NATION'S CAPITAL” mentioning the Department of Interior was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1922-E1923 on Oct. 6, 1998.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
U.S. PARK POLICE AVIATION UNIT CELEBRATES 25 YEARS OF SERVICE TO OUR
NATION'S CAPITAL
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HON. CHARLES H. TAYLOR
of north carolina
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, October 6, 1998
Mr. TAYLOR of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, last month, the United States Park Police Aviation Unit celebrated its 25th anniversary of service to the nation's capital. We all remember the vivid heroics of the unit in the Air Florida crash rescue on the Potomac River in 1982, and the valiant effort here at the Capitol earlier this summer. I know all Members will want to join me in congratulating Park Police Chief Robert Langston and the Unit on this important anniversary of service. As the Washington Times puts it ``Park Police take to the air in any and all emergencies.''
Park Police Take to the Air in Any and All Emergencies
A 36-year-old man on a motorcycle collides with another motorcycle as the two men swerve to avoid a piece of wood in the road near Crofton. The man slides across Route 450 and is in need of medical help.
Within minutes, the phone rings about 5:20 p.m. Saturday at the U.S. Park Police Aviation Section--called the Eagles Nest--at Anacostia Park.
Sgt. Kevin Duckworth, 36, a pilot, and Officer Doug Bullock, 32, a rescue technician, look at a map, grab their helmets and climb into Eagle 1, a twin-engine helicopter. They head to Crofton to fly the victim to Prince George's Hospital Center in Cheverly.
The helicopter lands in a grassy field at Crofton Middle School and waits about 10 minutes for an ambulance to arrive from the accident scene about 6 miles away. At 5:55 p.m., Sgt. Duckworth lifts the helicopter off the ground; five minutes later, doctors at the hospital are examining the man, who will recover.
The Saturday mission is one of more than 6,000 medical evacuations performed by the helicopter section since 1973.
The section is best known for its rescue of passengers in the January 1982 crash of an Air Florida jet into the 14th Street Bridge and Potomac River.
Most recently, it flew a mortally wounded Special Agent Officer John M. Gibson, 42, to the Washington Hospital Center on July 24 after the shooting at the U.S. Capitol that also killed Officer Jacob J. Chestnut, 58.
While those missions highlighted the aviation unit in the news, its primary role and about half of its work is law-enforcement operations. The officers in the sky patrol assist officers on the ground almost daily.
Since the demise of the Metropolitan Police Department's helicopter branch in 1996, the Park Police has the only law-enforcement aviation unit in Washington. Its main function is to assist the U.S. Park Police, but it also helps medical and law enforcement agencies across the metro area.
At the crew's discretion and depending on the number of hours the helicopters have flown in a month, officers can patrol in the air, usually for about an hour.
``You fly for an hour and you feel you've been through the wringer. It can be fatiguing,'' says Officer Ronald Galey, 49, who has been a member of the unit since 1977 and a pilot since 1987. A few minutes later, he and Officer Bullock take Eagle 1 up for patrol about 9 p.m. Saturday night.
The helicopter whirls past the U.S. Capitol, the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial, all glowing in the night.
The officers let dispatchers know they are in the air and available for assistance.
``Let's see if we can find an aggressive driver or two,'' Officer Bullock says.
In the next few minutes, the officers spot aggressive drivers along the Baltimore-Washington Parkway and again on the Capitol Beltway near the American Legion Bridge. The officers shine a spotlight on the drivers, who quickly slow down.
``It lets them know someone is watching them,'' Officer Bullock says.
The rain and chill in the air Saturday night apparently kept criminals indoors.
``It's pretty quiet out there,'' Officer Bullock says as his eyes scan the ground and he listens to the police radio.
``I'm not at all surprised, given the weather,'' Officer Galey says.
After an hour, the officers land the helicopter, refuel, fill out paperwork and wait for the next call.
In its 25 years--an anniversary the unit celebrated in a recent ceremony--the section has flown more than 25,000 hours without an accident. Since January 1994, the unit of 15 officers--six pilots, seven rescue technicians who are certified paramedics, and two administrators--operates 24 hours a day.
Park Police formed the aviation section in April 1973. It provides support for law enforcement, emergency medical evacuation for trauma patients, search-and-rescue missions, presidential and dignitary security, and transportation of high-risk prisoners.
Congress funds the unit--part of the U.S. Department of the Interior--that flies about 1,000 hours each year. The unit has two helicopters--Eagle 1, a Bell 412 SP, and Eagle 2, a Bell 206 Long-Ranger. Funding for a third helicopter is included in the $8.5 million budget for the aviation unit in the D.C. appropriations bill.
The two helicopters have thermal imagers that indicate heat and help officers find criminals hiding in woods or trespassers in federal parks after dark. They also have high-intensity searchlights, which is what the officers focused on the aggressive drivers.
The twin-engine helicopter has a rescue hoist system that has 245 feet of cable and can lift 600 pounds. The officers also have radios on board that allow them direct contact with officers on the ground.
From 1991 to 1997, the unit responded to more than 9,500 calls for assistance, performed more than 2,376 medical evacuations and responded to more than 730 search-and-rescue operations. It assisted on more than 3,360 criminal calls and 979 arrests and provided more than 812 flights for the president and other dignitaries.
``That's why I like it here. There's a variety,'' Sgt. Duckworth says.
When the helicopters are in the air, the rescue technicians handle the operation while the pilot concentrates on flying.
Officer Galey particularly enjoys the flights chasing fleeing criminals in cars. They are challenging, he says, because while watching sky, the pilot also is forced to divert his attention to the car on the road.
``And you're a little lower than you normally would be. There are a lot of towers to be cognizant of,'' he said.
Most pilots and rescue technicans agree that the most difficult operations are those involving injured children.``Nine times out of 10, it's because an adult messed up. They are victims of circumstance,'' Sgt. Duckworth said, sitting at aviation headquarters, where a gray cat has taken up residence and keeps the mice away.
Officer Galey said fewer patients are dying while en route to hospitals because, through the years, medics on the ground have been better trained and are more equipped to stabilize patients before they are put into the helicopter.
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