1. CityDroneWatch
  2. Why agencies fly

Stated purposes

Why agencies fly

The stated purpose of 306,420 flights, nationally and agency by agency.

306,420 flights with a stated purpose class.

33% state no purpose at all.

3% name a sensitive matter (domestic, sexual assault, kidnapping, welfare, mental health, juvenile, suicide).

Why agencies fly, nationally

Every flight's stated purpose, grouped into classes, as a share of all flights in the record.

  1. Not stated33%
  2. Call for service27%
  3. Other18%
  4. Drone as first responder6%
  5. Training and testing5%
  6. Patrol support3%
  7. Radio call3%
  8. Events2%
  9. Traffic and crashes1%
  10. Search1%
  11. Assisting another agency0%

Agency by agency

Each agency's most common purpose class, and how much of its record is sensitive or unstated. Click a header to sort.

AgencyFlightsTop purposeTop shareSensitiveNot stated
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police DepartmentLas Vegas, NV25,317Not stated96%0%96%
Cincinnati Police DepartmentCincinnati, OH24,106Call for service99%0%1%
Colorado Springs Police DepartmentColorado Springs, CO13,302Drone as first responder97%0%2%
Los Angeles Police DepartmentLos Angeles, CA12,234Radio call80%0%1%
Elk Grove Police DepartmentElk Grove, CA11,049Other71%9%29%
San Francisco Police DepartmentSan Francisco, CA10,010Call for service78%1%0%
Wichita Police DepartmentWichita, KS7,563Call for service45%0%3%
Aurora Police DepartmentAurora, CO6,583Not stated56%5%56%
Laredo Police DepartmentLaredo, TX6,195Call for service60%20%2%
Redondo Beach Police DepartmentRedondo Beach, CA5,709Not stated100%0%100%
Azusa Police DepartmentAzusa, CA5,708Not stated100%0%100%
Dearborn Police DepartmentDearborn, MI5,454Search31%1%2%
Alhambra Police DepartmentAlhambra, CA5,425Other54%11%45%
Milwaukee Police DepartmentMilwaukee, WI5,228Call for service40%0%1%
Hawthorne Police DepartmentHawthorne, CA4,810Not stated83%1%83%
Philadelphia Police DepartmentPhiladelphia, PA3,906Call for service45%0%5%
Mesa Police DepartmentMesa, AZ3,754Not stated66%0%66%
Concord Police DepartmentConcord, CA3,700Call for service63%15%1%
Rochester Police DepartmentRochester, MN3,580Call for service55%0%1%
Chula Vista Police DepartmentChula Vista, CA3,514Other50%12%10%
Brookhaven Police DepartmentBrookhaven, GA3,484Drone as first responder97%0%2%
Las Cruces Police DepartmentLas Cruces, NM3,450Other53%12%25%
Toledo Police DepartmentToledo, OH3,405Other82%5%18%
Brea Police DepartmentBrea, CA3,252Call for service56%0%2%
Santa Ana Police DepartmentSanta Ana, CA3,170Call for service78%0%5%
Prosper Police DepartmentProsper, TX2,962Not stated51%2%51%
Scottsdale Police DepartmentScottsdale, AZ2,936Not stated81%0%81%
South Bend Police DepartmentSouth Bend, IN2,909Other47%9%32%
Greeley Police DepartmentGreeley, CO2,770Call for service96%0%1%
Peoria Police DepartmentPeoria, AZ2,702Other53%9%44%
Brooklyn Park Police DepartmentBrooklyn Park, MN2,564Call for service72%0%12%
Washoe County Sheriff's OfficeWashoe County, NV2,456Not stated54%1%54%
Edinburg Police DepartmentEdinburg, TX2,412Other59%2%30%
DeKalb County Police DepartmentDeKalb County, GA2,261Not stated62%1%62%
Perth Amboy Police DepartmentPerth Amboy, NJ2,247Not stated87%0%87%
Denver Police DepartmentDenver, CO2,240Patrol support96%0%2%
St. Paul Police DepartmentSaint Paul, MN2,218Call for service62%0%32%
Coachella Valley Rtic (Coachella Valley, CA)Coachella Valley, CA2,208Other67%10%13%
Conyers Police DepartmentConyers, GA2,118Not stated78%3%78%
Irvine Police DepartmentIrvine, CA2,079Not stated100%0%100%
Hemet Police DepartmentHemet, CA2,046Not stated60%3%60%
Anne Arundel County PoliceAnne Arundel County, MD1,993Other38%2%23%
Schenectady Police DepartmentSchenectady, NY1,986Call for service72%5%15%
South San Francisco Police DepartmentSouth San Francisco, CA1,930Call for service70%14%0%
Arvada Police DepartmentArvada, CO1,928Call for service38%13%2%
San Angelo Police DepartmentSan Angelo, TX1,902Other55%13%29%
Snohomish County Sheriff's OfficeSnohomish County, WA1,882Other42%11%0%
Oak Brook Police DepartmentOak Brook, IL1,786Not stated100%0%100%
Hempstead Police DepartmentHempstead, NY1,676Not stated79%0%79%
San Rafael Police DepartmentSan Rafael, CA1,627Other68%0%29%
Caldwell Police DepartmentCaldwell, ID1,611Call for service85%0%0%
Humble Police DepartmentHumble, TX1,604Not stated60%2%60%
Mooresville Police DepartmentMooresville, NC1,573Other43%7%30%
Castle Rock Police DepartmentCastle Rock, CO1,570Not stated49%5%49%
Clovis Police DepartmentClovis, CA1,529Call for service69%18%13%
Riverside County Sheriff's OfficeRiverside County, CA1,504Not stated99%0%99%
Hamilton County Sheriff's OfficeHamilton County, IN1,495Not stated88%2%88%
Ramapo Town Police DepartmentTown of Ramapo, NY1,466Not stated33%1%33%
El Segundo Police DepartmentEl Segundo, CA1,445Not stated75%1%75%
Mansfield Police DepartmentMansfield, TX1,436Not stated60%0%60%
Minnetonka Police DepartmentMinnetonka, MN1,403Call for service59%0%8%
Midwest City Police DepartmentMidwest City, OK1,374Not stated56%5%56%
Lewisville Police DepartmentLewisville, TX1,303Call for service81%0%1%
Durango Police DepartmentDurango, CO1,270Patrol support89%0%0%
St. Cloud Police DepartmentSt. Cloud, FL1,224Call for service51%4%5%
Buena Park Police DepartmentBuena Park, CA1,218Other67%0%33%
Dunwoody Police DepartmentDunwoody, GA1,186Not stated94%0%94%
Casa Grande Police DepartmentCasa Grande, AZ1,141Other37%18%30%
Elizabethtown Police DepartmentElizabethtown, KY1,064Other41%11%30%
Vanderbilt University Police DepartmentNashville, TN1,055Not stated86%0%86%
Los Angeles Port PoliceLos Angeles, CA1,049Not stated62%0%62%
Campbell Police DepartmentCampbell, CA1,027Call for service100%0%0%
Sacramento Police DepartmentSacramento, CA1,013Other82%11%10%
Duluth Police DepartmentDuluth, MN1,002Call for service78%0%1%
Oswego County Emergency ManagementOswego County, NY994Call for service86%0%14%
Glendale Police DepartmentGlendale, CA987Training and testing87%0%13%
Roanoke Police DepartmentRoanoke, TX935Not stated71%0%71%
Southern Illinois University Police DepartmentCarbondale, IL915Not stated66%1%66%
Conroe Police DepartmentConroe, TX898Call for service49%11%0%
Cottonwood Police DepartmentCottonwood, AZ894Not stated100%0%100%
Farmers Branch Police DepartmentFarmers Branch, TX837Not stated57%4%57%
Santa Clara County Sheriff's OfficeSan Jose, CA832Call for service74%0%3%
Ventura County Sheriff's Office Emergency ServicesVentura County, CA827Not stated100%0%100%
Lancaster Police DepartmentLancaster, CA816Not stated100%0%100%
Harvey Police DepartmentHarvey, IL816Not stated71%2%71%
Alameda County Sheriff's OfficeAlameda County, CA806Other55%4%36%
Cobb County Police DepartmentCobb County, GA758Patrol support45%0%9%
Tampa Police DepartmentTampa, FL754Call for service60%0%1%
Laurel Police DepartmentLaurel, MD740Call for service82%0%3%
Denton Police DepartmentDenton, TX730Call for service94%0%1%
DFR and Rfd Platform (South San Francisco, CA)South San Francisco, CA724Not stated96%0%96%
Fort Worth Police DepartmentFort Worth, TX709Not stated60%3%60%
Suisun City Police DepartmentSuisun City, CA633Not stated100%0%100%
Overland Park Police DepartmentOverland Park, KS588Call for service92%0%5%
The Colony Police DepartmentThe Colony, TX584Not stated64%4%64%
Chico Police DepartmentChico, CA571Other82%3%16%
Temple Police DepartmentTemple, TX559Other73%14%27%
Washington County Sheriff's OfficeWashington County, OR536Patrol support60%0%1%
Bloomington Police DepartmentBloomington, IL514Training and testing61%0%8%
Killeen Police DepartmentKilleen, TX513Patrol support84%0%2%
King County Sheriff's OfficeKing County, WA507Not stated100%0%100%
Belmont Police DepartmentBelmont, CA494Assisting another agency33%0%3%
University of Illinois Urbana - ChampaignChristian County, IL490Training and testing63%0%0%
Arlington Police DepartmentArlington, TX489Call for service93%0%7%
Galveston Police DepartmentGalveston, TX462Not stated56%3%56%
New Orleans Police DepartmentNew Orleans, LA456Events75%0%0%
Montgomery County Police DepartmentBethesda, MD451Drone as first responder94%0%1%
Detroit Fire DepartmentDetroit, MI435Training and testing47%0%1%
Chesterfield County Police DepartmentChesterfield County, VA434Training and testing57%0%0%
Bellingham Police DepartmentBellingham, WA427Other42%16%2%
Show Low Police DepartmentShow Low, AZ427Not stated78%0%78%
Fulton County Sheriff's OfficeFulton County, GA424Not stated100%0%100%
Menifee Police DepartmentMenifee, CA422Call for service81%0%4%
Melrose Park Police DepartmentMelrose Park, IL405Call for service66%0%15%
Monroe County Sheriff's OfficeTown of Henrietta, NY400Patrol support43%0%6%
Gilbert Police DepartmentGilbert, AZ396Not stated90%2%90%
Metropolitan Nashville Police DepartmentNashville, TN395Call for service50%13%0%
Cherry Hill Police DepartmentEvesham Township, NJ390Training and testing94%1%1%
Scott County Sheriff's OfficeScott County, IA360Other84%2%11%
Georgia Tech Police DepartmentAtlanta, GA346Not stated75%2%75%
San Mateo Police DepartmentSan Mateo, CA317Call for service52%15%3%
Cleveland Division of PoliceCleveland, OH311Events42%0%0%
Medford Police DepartmentMedford, OR280Call for service53%2%0%
The University of Tennessee - KnoxvilleSequatchie County, TN277Events45%0%2%
Everett Police DepartmentEverett, WA248Call for service91%0%1%
Sansom Park Police DepartmentSansom Park, TX231Not stated90%0%90%
Palm Springs Police DepartmentPalm Springs, CA206Call for service97%0%3%
Hawaii Department of Law EnforcementHonolulu, HI192Training and testing66%0%8%
Southington Police DepartmentSouthington, CT184Other72%9%28%
Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's OfficeCalcasieu Parish, LA183Drone as first responder98%0%1%
El Cajon Police DepartmentEl Cajon, CA180Call for service72%0%13%
Page Police DepartmentPage, AZ168Other74%0%0%
Pickens County Sheriffs OfficeJasper, GA157Other55%0%0%
Dallas Police DepartmentDallas, TX153Training and testing99%0%0%
City of MankatoMankato, MN149Other98%0%2%
Roselle Police DepartmentRoselle, IL139Training and testing28%11%0%
Berkeley Police DepartmentBerkeley, IL133Not stated100%0%100%
Yuma Police DepartmentYuma, AZ128Other98%0%0%
Kansas City Fire DepartmentKansas City, MO125Call for service38%0%22%
Bothell Police DepartmentBothell, WA123Not stated100%0%100%
Fremont Police and FireFremont, CA123Call for service100%0%0%
University of Arizona - Real Time Coordination CenterTucson, AZ121Call for service76%0%0%
Elm Ridge Police DepartmentElm Ridge, TX120Not stated98%0%98%
Dutchess County Sheriff's OfficeDutchess County, NY115Not stated97%2%97%
Hollywood Police DepartmentHollywood, FL107Not stated63%0%63%
Westmont Police DepartmentWestmont, IL104Not stated69%1%69%
Prince William County Police DepartmentWoodbridge, VA101Call for service35%0%0%
Pacifica Police DepartmentPacifica, CA97Other57%0%4%
Upper Arlington Police DivisionUpper Arlington, OH97Not stated54%0%54%
Fitchburg Police DepartmentFitchburg, WI94Other41%0%35%
Glendale Police DepartmentGlendale, AZ83Not stated99%0%99%
Watchung Police DepartmentWatchung, NJ80Training and testing61%0%0%
Tulsa Fire DepartmentTulsa, OK78Call for service46%0%17%
Rowlett Police DepartmentDallas, TX77Call for service56%12%18%
Virginia Beach Police DepartmentVirginia Beach, VA67Call for service93%0%7%
Orange County Sheriff's DepartmentTustin, CA64Call for service80%0%0%
Rye City Police DepartmentCity of Rye, NY63Other57%0%8%
Sterling Heights Police DepartmentSterling Heights, MI59Other34%0%3%
Hampton Police DepartmentHampton, VA53Other66%0%2%
Addison Police DepartmentAddison Township, IL51Other100%0%0%
Dutchess County Sheriff's Office Uas UnitTown of Hyde Park, NY50Training and testing62%0%2%
Appleton Police DepartmentAppleton, WI48Call for service35%15%12%
Paradise Police DepartmentParadise, CA48Not stated96%0%96%
Sunrise Police DepartmentSunrise, FL47Training and testing77%0%9%
Emporia Police DepartmentEmporia, VA47Not stated64%6%64%
West Palm Beach Police DepartmentWest Palm Beach, FL46Not stated100%0%100%
Niles Police DepartmentNiles, IL40Call for service55%0%0%
Gerrittsen Beach Fire DepartmentNew York, NY39Other51%0%21%
Fairfax County Police DepartmentReston, VA38Not stated97%0%97%
Csu Long Beach (Long Beach, CA)Long Beach, CA37Other100%0%0%
El Dorado Police Department- KansasEl Dorado, KS34Other62%0%0%
Chiefland Police DepartmentChiefland, FL34Training and testing56%0%0%
Tennessee Department of TransportationTennessee, TN33Other88%0%12%
Rohnert Park Department of Public SafetyRohnert Park, CA33Training and testing82%0%18%
Hamilton Police DepartmentHamilton, OH32Not stated100%0%100%
Norton Police DepartmentNorton, OH32Training and testing56%0%0%
University of Maryland, BaltimoreBaltimore, MD32Other100%0%0%
Los Gatos/Monte Sereno Police DepartmentLos Gatos, CA32Not stated100%0%100%
Adams County Sheriffs OfficeAdams County, WA31Other48%0%13%
Isle of Palms Police DepartmentIsle of Palms, SC31Call for service58%0%0%
Gray Fire RescueGray, ME29Other72%0%17%
Los Altos Police DepartmentLos Altos, CA26Other65%8%0%
Titusville Police DepartmentTitusville, FL23Other78%0%0%
Oklahoma City Police DepartmentOklahoma City, OK23Training and testing91%0%0%
Lady Lake Police DepartmentLady Lake, FL22Training and testing82%0%0%
Terrebonne Parish Sheriff's OfficeTerrebonne Parish, LA20Not stated50%0%50%
Chicago Heights Police DepartmentChicago Heights, IL19Patrol support89%0%11%
University of St. Thomas Police DepartmentHouston, TX19Not stated100%0%100%
AEP Telecom APCo (Roanoke County, VA)Roanoke County, VA18Not stated100%0%100%
Webster Parish Office of Homeland SecurityWebster Parish, LA17Other94%0%0%
Nashville Fire DepartmentNashville, TN17Training and testing88%0%0%
Washington County Sheriff's OfficeWashington County, MD17Other94%0%0%
Providence Police DepartmentProvidence, RI17Call for service53%0%0%
Oklahoma City Police DepartmentOklahoma City, OK16Training and testing62%0%6%
Lake County Sheriff's OfficeLake County, FL15Training and testing87%0%0%
Pasco-Hernando State CollegeManatee County, FL15Not stated100%0%100%
Fayette County Sheriff's OfficeFayette County, GA14Not stated86%0%86%
Culpeper Police DepartmentCulpeper, VA13Not stated100%0%100%
Miami Beach Police DepartmentMiami Beach, FL12Other67%0%0%
Systra Canada (Neekreen, Liberia)Neekreen, LR12Not stated100%0%100%
Yonkers Police DepartmentYonkers, NY12Not stated92%0%92%
Arkansas DOTGrant County, AR11Other45%0%9%
Summerville Police DepartmentSummerville, SC11Training and testing45%0%9%
Amarillo Police DepartmentAmarillo, TX10Drone as first responder80%0%10%
South Miami Police DepartmentSouth Miami, FL10Not stated100%0%100%
Dominion Energy (Moore County, NC)Moore County, SC10Not stated100%0%100%
BLM (Ketchikan Gateway Borough, AK)Ketchikan Gateway Borough, AK10Other90%0%10%
Rutgers University Police DepartmentNew Brunswick, NJ10Training and testing70%0%30%
New Market Police DepartmentNew Market, VA10Assisting another agency90%0%0%
AEP ApCo (Carroll County, VA)Carroll County, VA10Not stated80%0%80%
Galt Police DepartmentGalt, CA10Call for service80%0%0%
Sioux City Police DepartmentGrand Meadow Township, IA9Other56%0%0%
Oakland County Sheriff's OfficePontiac, MI9Not stated100%0%100%
Quincy Police DepartmentQuincy, FL8Not stated100%0%100%
Louisville Metro Police DepartmentLouisville, KY7Not stated43%0%43%
Amarillo Police DepartmentAmarillo, TX7Not stated100%0%100%
El Centro Police DepartmentEl Centro, CA7Other71%0%29%
Salt Lake City Police DepartmentSalt Lake City, UT7Not stated100%0%100%
AEP SWEPCo (Panola County, TX)Panola County, TX7Not stated100%0%100%
Clinton County Sheriff's OfficeRichland Township, OH7Training and testing100%0%0%
Bernalillo County Sheriff's OfficeAlbuquerque, NM7Search43%14%0%
Long Beach Police DepartmentLong Beach, CA6Not stated100%0%100%
NIRAS (København, Denmark)København, DK6Other100%0%0%
Milford Police DepartmentMilford, CT6Other67%0%0%
Hot Springs Police DepartmentHot Springs, AR6Training and testing83%0%0%
Nye County Sheriffs OfficePahrump, NV6Not stated100%0%100%
Kootenai County Sheriff's OfficeKootenai County, ID6Other100%0%0%
Unc Chapel Hill Police DepartmentChapel Hill, NC6Not stated100%0%100%
Fargo Police DepartmentFargo, ND5Not stated100%0%100%
Frederick County Sheriff's OfficeFrederick County, MD5Other80%0%0%
Chicago Police DepartmentChicago, IL5Other100%0%0%
Nevada County Sheriff's OfficeNevada County, CA5Call for service80%0%20%
Boulder Police DepartmentBoulder, CO5Not stated100%0%100%
Knox County Sheriffs OfficeKnox County, TN5Patrol support100%0%0%
New Berlin Marshal's OfficeNew Berlin, TX5Assisting another agency80%0%0%

How this page is made

  • Every flight in the agency's published record is counted and listed; drawn paths are the whole flight, takeoff to landing.
  • The record's free-text description is never read into a page. A flight whose stated purpose names a domestic, sexual-assault, kidnapping, welfare, mental-health or juvenile matter is listed like any other but drawn as a generalised area, not a path.
  • Operators are the agency's own accounts in the record, numbered within the agency in order of first flight; no name or address is read into a page.
  • Purposes are the agency's own words, grouped into classes by a fixed list of terms; unmatched values are "Other" and blank ones "Not stated".
  • Times are shown on the agency's own local clock.
  • Purpose classes come from each agency's own words, grouped by a fixed list of terms; an agency that writes nothing shows as "Not stated", and words the table does not know show as "Other".
  • Comparing agencies by purpose compares their habits of writing, not only of flying: two agencies with the same work can label it differently.

Corrections and questions: see the about page. See about this site for the sources and the publication rules.