New police plane to start patrolling Saskatoon skies at end of May

Wade Bourassa can't suppress a giggle when describing his bird's-eye view of criminals trying to hide from the Saskatoon police plane.

Bourassa is a Saskatoon Police Service sergeant and one of its pilots — and he'll soon be at the controls of a new plane, after the city decided to invest in its own aircraft for the service.

The current plane's sophisticated electronic gear gives the airborne officers a heat signature of individuals on the ground.

"So it's not just about saying that a suspect is hiding in a backyard," he said. "We can tell other officers that the suspect is behind the bush against the fence."

It's been a good year for Bourassa and the police service's air support unit.

The city is spending $800,000 to buy the new plane for the unit. Up until now, it's leased a 1998 Cessna at a cost of about $250,000 a year.

The city went for a 2016 Cessna that's basically the same model as the plane that's currently being leased, but which will be upgraded for the service.

That means precise storm-tracking gear, an improved radio system, better sightlines for the cameras and a quieter engine.

It should be in the air by the end of May.

Leadership award

And Bourassa is being recognized with a leadership award from the Saskatchewan Association of Police Chiefs.

Supt. Brian Shalovelo nominated the 19-year veteran for the award.

"He and his team have proven the overwhelming benefits of integrating an Air Support Unit into the Patrol structure," Shalovelo wrote in his nomination letter.

"Because of Sergeant Bourassa's leadership and passion many criminals that would have escaped accountability, many victims who would be re-victimized and many police officers … that would have been put in jeopardy, are safer."

Bourassa can speak in granular detail about the financial justification for buying a plane instead of leasing, and about the merits of the various gear upgrades.

Which is all necessary knowledge.

But an incident from Wednesday provides some insight into how police use their aircraft.

According to a police media release, just after 8:30 a.m. CST officers in the city spotted an auto with plates that didn't match the make. They tried to pull over the driver but he bolted out of town.

There is a short list of choices in such a scenario. A speeding driver in rush hour typically means police need to call off the ground troops.

The plane was in the air and it tracked the driver to a farm near Osler, about 30 kilometres north of Saskatoon. He ditched the auto and took off on foot into the fields, police said.

The pilot relayed this all to Warman RCMP. They set up a perimeter and arrested a 23-year-old man.

Bourassa says other police forces are taking notice.

"Everybody is calling on us to see how we're doing what we're doing," he said.

"We're incredibly effective."