Its been a total cluster**** from start to finish! They refused to listen to those of us who were saying that they were working from a flawed principle back in 2010, and they continued to work from their flawed plan ever since. The whole concept of the successful years prior to 2010 was to get the asset overhead the scene of the crime or incident, within 10-15 minutes so that there was a good chance of making a difference to the outcome. 33 aircraft operating from 27 bases provided that possibility, and perhaps even more importantly gave the hard pressed guys & gals on the ground additional confidence. The public also, were re assured that the Police were there to protect them, and the helicopter overhead was a symbol of that presence.
Today with the fleet down to just a few aircraft, that almost instantaneous presence overhead almost never happens. The distances to travel are just too great and the deterrent factor has been lost. Any Practical Police Officer with experience of what was needed to produce a good TFO would have told you, that they needed to be an experienced Police Officer with an in depth knowledge of their area. It is true that they needed to be a proven thief catcher and possessed the character to do that from the air. There could never be any real savings from training a civilian to do the job because the skills and abilities required demanded a salary very similar to that of a mid service PC. The loss of flexibility was actually a negative factor.
The NPAS disaster was bound to happen as it has. The report that gave it life was written by someone with no knowledge of what had made UK Police Air Support into the the most effective operational tool that it was. It could have been made better by centralised command and control delivered on a Regional basis to ensure wide cover of the asset. There were huge savings to be made from centralised training, Insurance and maintenance contracts. Standardisation of aircraft too!
But no the only mantra to be followed was that of cutting slashing and burning all that had been achieved. The Concept of air SUPPORT was forgotten. The idea of being able to identify and pinpoint the criminal was no longer important, - just save money.
Sadly today, because the Police Service has been almost withdrawn from our lives the criminal has realised that there is nothing to stop him anymore and he is free to do what he wants! Driving standards have plummeted because there is no one stopping and advising. Violent crime is rapidly increasing, again who is there to stop them? We lost it, - because no one could see the folly of the Mantra "Just save money , nothing else matters". NPAS epitomises that thought process.