Skip to main content

a-vi-a-tion

 


Once upon a time - - in 2019 - -  County Executive Calvin Ball was accused of destroying the universe because he proposed discontinuing the county’s aviation program. 

Fruit Salad, April 2019

Even though his (Republican) predecessor had advocated for the very same thing, Ball’s recommendation was interpreted as a threat to the well-being of the entire county rather than the responsible fiscal decision it was: one piece in a comprehensive response to a pre-existing 108 million budget deficit. I might add that posts on social media for some time after this showed some folks singing this same song over and over. The helicopter brouhaha seemed to be an agreed-upon “public safety” talking point, even though: 

Howard County will continue to have aviation coverage from other partner agencies, 24 hours a day. The availability of aviation service to officers and the public will not be affected. 

In addition, the Howard County Police Department will continue to explore more innovative ways to use technology and enhance services to officers and the public. (HoCoGov)

I remember wondering at the time what those “innovative uses of technology” might be and learned that the trend in public safety across the country was exploring the use of drones in lieu of helicopters.

Well, friends. Here we are. It is now 2026 and Dr. Ball is concluding eight years of service to Howard County. Take a look at this November 5th announcement from HoCoGov:

The Howard County Police Department (HCPD) has announced it is expanding its drone program to include "Drone as First Responder" (DFR). Through its DFR program, HCPD will deploy seven pre-positioned drones from rooftop docks to arrive at calls-for-service in minutes or even seconds, bypassing traffic and physical road barriers and significantly speeding up police response.

The drones will stream live video to HCPD's Real Time Information Center, giving responding officers aerial information to prepare for what they might encounter at the scene. This helps responders assess hazards, look for weapons, locate suspects, and track missing children or vulnerable adults.

Like the HCPD's standard drone program, DFRs will not patrol or monitor the public, identify faces, or record sound.

To learn more about this announcement, check out HCPD's "Howard County Police enhance use of technology" news release online at

www.howardcountymd.gov/police/howard-county-police-enhance-use-technology .

Yes, some pinned their definition of public safety on one helicopter in 2019 while the world changed around them.  We now see drones employed routinely in ways we never imagined in 2019. Their ability to provide detailed aerial views without putting human personnel at risk is no longer some kind of pie in the sky sci-fi scenario. It has become common practice.

This recent announcement about Drones as First Responders reminds me of how often County Executive Ball has worked with County employees to look forward, to anticipate needs, and to employ creative problem-solving techniques in addressing 21st century challenges. Those whose idea of leadership involves looking backwards seem to be oblivious to the obvious: if you attempt to lead while looking backwards you will 1.be woefully ignorant of your current surroundings and 2. completely uninformed about what lies ahead.

A leader who doesn’t want to pay attention? Who wants that? Luckily, Howard County has made better choices.



Village Green/Town² Comments 



Comments

  1. Julia A. McCreadyNovember 10, 2026 at 4:16 AM

    Please do not submit comments here. This function will be disabled shortly. Use the link above instead. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents.  When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...
1 comment
Read more

F ³: We Are Not Entitled

  A college student went missing. His family and friends were distraught. The community was encouraged to be on the lookout and spread the word.  Days passed.  They must have been agonizing days for those who cared about the missing student. Thoughts that foul play had been involved cannot have been far from their thoughts.  Then, at last, the student was found. Alive. The news was shared with the public.  So. Much. Relief. A family had been reunited with their child. Even though we know that life is complicated, I think it is okay to accept this as a happy ending and leave it at that.  But the world of social media says no. For every expression of joy at the news came questions and even judgement. It became clear to me that some folks felt entitled to an explanation. They wanted the backstory. It’s as though they felt that, by enlisting the help of the public on social media, the authorities now owed them all the details. Television dramas often weave curr...
2 comments
Read more

Separate and Unequal

  Remember “Separate but equal”? Remember how that really meant that Black schools languished in  broken-down buildings without adequate heat or toilet facilities, with cast-off, ragged learning materials, underfunded and largely ignored? The Supreme Court struck that down in 1954. The evidence was clear that separate was not equal. Plessy v Ferguson had led to - - no, endorsed - - deeply unequal schooling and opportunities. We tend to think of Brown v Board as being purely about racial integration. It was not.  It was about the logical consequences of segregation. And they were not, not, not equal. The ruling in 1954 didn’t transform public education for non-whites into a land of milk and honey by any means. But it articulated some essential truths in a way that made including everyone a legal precedent which could be relied upon and built upon. It was better than what came before it but it rested upon unsteady ground. It did not necessarily change the hearts or minds ...
1 comment
Read more