UK’s West Midlands Police install drones on stadiums

England’s West Midlands Police have announced the installation of drone hubs on the roofs of the Villa Park and Molineux stadiums in Birmingham and Wolverhampton.

The drones, installed in partnership with the Premier League, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), and the Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers football clubs, will be used to police the large crowds of attendees coming to and from the stadiums on match days.

West Midlands Police said the uncrewed aircraft would allow aerial footage to be “beamed into club control rooms” while being remotely piloted by pilots in the police’s control room “miles away”.

Alongside match day crowd control, the drones will also be deployed to respond to emergency incidents in the surrounding area, such as missing people and serious traffic collisions.

The implementation of the new drones follows successful tests in January at Aston Villa’s game against Nottingham Forest, and the Wolverhampton Wanderers’ match against West Ham.

“This is a truly groundbreaking use of technology which will have a real impact on fan safety at football matches, and wider public safety in the West Midlands,” said Assistant Chief Constable Matt Welsted, who leads the project for West Midlands Police. “Police officers and club officials who share the job of ensuring crowds get to and from grounds safely will have access to live video, so any issues with congestion can be dealt with swiftly and safely.

“And it’s not just football fans who will benefit,” he added. “We’ll be using the drones as first responders, so that they can take off even when teams aren’t playing, and get to the scene of serious collisions, or help with searches for wanted or missing people quickly and safely.”

Knoxville Police Department, in the US state of Tennessee, recently announced plans to acquire 12 drones for emergency calls.