Denver Drones

[eddiememphis]

https://denverite.com/2025/10/14/denver-police-flock-drones/
https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/local-politics/denver-contract-flock-ai-drones-police-calls/73-0bcdc6c4-e98a-41bc-bd7d-7186260a2735

The Denver Police Department has signed a free trial contract with Flock to use the company's Aerodome flying drones - a "fully automated air support system" that can reach crime scenes often faster than police can arrive.

When a 911 call comes in, a drone would fly from a dock to the scene to help the department determine what's happening and what safety considerations - like firearms - may be present.

The contract provides Denver with free access to the Flock Aerodome system for one year. The system includes drones that can launch automatically and reach speeds up to 53 mph. According to the agreement, the drones integrate with Flock's automated license plate reader systems, gunshot detection sensors, and the city's 911 dispatch system.

The drones are equipped with cameras featuring 400-times zoom, thermal imaging, and night vision capabilities. The contract states they can "capture audio, video, image, and recording data" and provide live feeds to officers on any internet-connected device.


But don't worry, it will only be used to fight crime, not surveil anyone!

And, as an aside to the 9 news writer, "400-times zoom" is both grammatically and technically incorrect.

[kidicarus13]

Just disperse when the police tell you to. Rebel rouser.99550

[BPTactical]

https://youtu.be/wn8XFiAwLkM

[Clint45]

During the TdA investigation in Aurora the feds brought in some rather advanced drones. A friend lived nearby and told me about what she saw. A couple blocks away someone magdumped a full auto AK while she was on the porch. Shortly thereafter, a drone zipped by at treetop level, no lights, very quiet, then apparently landed on a tree and latched onto a branch. I did some research into this and the tech for that exists, typically only used by scientists. Guessing they had multiple drones posted at various areas to monitor TdA vehicles fleeing the scene.

[FoxtArt]

Is it going to be "officer down!" when these are taken out of the sky? I'm waiting for them to hold a full law enforcement funeral for a Flock drone named "Spike" once someone microwaves its ass.

[theGinsue]

https://denverite.com/2025/10/14/denver-police-flock-drones/
https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/local-politics/denver-contract-flock-ai-drones-police-calls/73-0bcdc6c4-e98a-41bc-bd7d-7186260a2735

The Denver Police Department has signed a free trial contract with Flock to use the company's Aerodome flying drones - a "fully automated air support system" that can reach crime scenes often faster than police can arrive.

When a 911 call comes in, a drone would fly from a dock to the scene to help the department determine what's happening and what safety considerations - like firearms - may be present.

The contract provides Denver with free access to the Flock Aerodome system for one year. The system includes drones that can launch automatically and reach speeds up to 53 mph. According to the agreement, the drones integrate with Flock's automated license plate reader systems, gunshot detection sensors, and the city's 911 dispatch system.

The drones are equipped with cameras featuring 400-times zoom, thermal imaging, and night vision capabilities. The contract states they can "capture audio, video, image, and recording data" and provide live feeds to officers on any internet-connected device.


But don't worry, it will only be used to fight crime, not surveil anyone!

Yeah; right. Of course it says "When a 911 call comes in, a drone would fly from a dock to the scene..."

How long before those drones are used for detecting criminal activity as it occurs ("not surveillance", per se [splitting hairs], just pre-crime monitoring. Sort of like when cops run speed traps.)? It wouldn't be a big jump with those drones already integrated with Flocks license plate readers. I imagine many more "Speed Checked By Aircraft" signs going up.

[BPTactical]

Curious if there have been any changes to this.

[BushMasterBoy]

I just tried to post a video, but it just makes a link. Anyway the video states that the DHS reports drones coming over the border.


youtube.com/watch?v=0xTdHKfP5Y8


[MOD: I've got your back]

0xTdHKfP5Y8

[Hummer]

When the mission of police drones change from apprehending criminals (enemies of the people) to surveilling the people with no known links to crime but who may be enemies of those in power, that's when we should all have drone killing devices.

[JohnnyEgo]

I am tangentially aware of this because Flock is in the same FAA IPP program as I am courtesy of my employer. As I recall, they were only given permission to operate in VLOS within a five mile radius of the station. So the crimes need to be fairly close by and the platforms Flock is using don't have a lot of loiter time. I view this as mostly security theater at the moment.

[Oscar77]

And I thought, FWIW, that a news article not too long ago (Maybe Boulder???) was already using them.
There was some shooting/man with a gun and they used one.

The future is now old man.

And this whole "privacy thing" ship sailed long long ago.
Drones etc makes no difference.

Having cameras video whatever you want to call up in the air it was settled LONG AGO too.
Its no different - legally- if the Cops were in a plane or helicopter or using a satellite.
I dont agree with it but this "OMG we are losing our privacy" thought process died a long long time ago.

[FoxtArt]

And I thought, FWIW, that a news article not too long ago (Maybe Boulder???) was already using them.
There was some shooting/man with a gun and they used one.

The future is now old man.

And this whole "privacy thing" ship sailed long long ago.
Drones etc makes no difference.

Having cameras video whatever you want to call up in the air it was settled LONG AGO too.
Its no different - legally- if the Cops were in a plane or helicopter or using a satellite.
I dont agree with it but this "OMG we are losing our privacy" thought process died a long long time ago.

Yup. It died because of the way our judicial system was constructed.

Case 1: A absolutely shitty person was caught using something that was a grey area (drone in this case). Judge writes an opinion that justifies the use. It's appealed, appeal writes an opinion that justifies the use because they don't like the shitty person.

Case 2: A true privacy case arises where it is entirely BS, and the drone is a clear invasion of rights. However, Case #1 set a precedent, and now they follow it. Use of the drone is now justified.

Our judicial system unfortunately does not have real checks and balances, and adopted the system from the worst period of the middle ages, and judges are the most-career safe of any profession. The creep is unstoppable because judges rule based on their own discretion of "what they think is right", very few rule against their own concious based on the LAW and the RULES. Sometimes this works out for people, but it inevitably decays expected rights, and the discretion is often flat wrong. For a successful republic, we need the latter, that actually releases a serial killer if they fuck up the arrest/investigation/etc. Because otherwise, the justification to put away the serial killer is also used to put away the political dissident.

[Wulf202]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uB0gr7Fh6lY

Flock has some security issues. Aurora PD specifically 14:25

[FoxtArt]

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/illinois/articles/2025-11-20/border-patrol-is-monitoring-us-drivers-and-detaining-those-with-suspicious-travel-patterns

I think this (broad license plate tracking and "suspicious patterns", not re: Border Patrol specifically) is a rare issue where most conservatives, independents, and liberals would agree that all of this sucks.

Of course, there's the Karen's on all parties that would love for us to have minority-report level tracking, going so far as to arrest people before they committed any crime... But I believe they are a minority.

I think the main reason this exists and will continue to expand is twofold.

1) $ talks, more than votes.

2) Governments, by nature, want to defend the current institution from any imaginable threat to that governance (not necessarily about the safety of the populace). This is more like an immune system, which will even attack itself (autoimmune) when any component threatens the status quo. The supposed check-and-balance (judicial) is an ingrained part of this system, and will hardly be the component that threatens the status quo. It will, over time, support the creep of surveillance ("This serial killer can't go free, we need to write an opinion explaining why surveillance is OK"), ignoring and eventually outright destroying clear rights.

Even republics naturally decay into this, a surveillance state provides a natural defense to maintain the status quo of the institutions and the people embedded within it.

I predict, despite how obviously unconstitutional a lot of this is, various courts over the following years will rubber stamp more-and-more until we practically have the equivalent of the Chinese surveillance state... some wins here and there, but largely a slippery slope authorizing more and more use until we have our own social credit score and your facial emotions are logged the moment you step out of your door. The only question is how long this takes... 20 years, at the most?

TLDR: We (US Citizens) are fucked.

[Aloha_Shooter]

https://www.geekwire.com/2025/washington-state-cities-turn-off-license-plate-reader-cameras-amid-ruling-on-data-access/

Interesting that the cities in question would rather turn off those "automated license plate reader" cameras once the judge ruled the public had a right to access the data they produced. A paranoid might think they were using those cameras for something other than reading license plates ...

[theGinsue]

As always Aloha-Shooter: 100% on the mark!

[battlemidget]

As a former big city dweller, I'm all about safety in the public spaces. The public access of the ALPR data is an interesting wrinkle.

[kidicarus13]

Benjamin Franklin once said: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

Maximum speed of 53 mph you say… Interesting.

Forget AR’s, the real edge of the second amendment fight is going to be personal drones. Who wouldn’t want personalized air support?

I can see Apple branding it as “iSR”

[BushMasterBoy]

I'm more worried about drones that damage national assets. My preference for a countermeasure is a 12ga shotgun.
What is scary is a Reaper escorted by an Apache helo shut down my PC. I don't mind helping the .mil out, but at least give me some warning. I could have lost an Ebay bid! Merry Christmas!