§ Dr. TongeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to ban flights by police helicopters in London between the hours of 11 pm and 6 am. [60634]
§ Mr. BoatengThe use of police helicopters is governed by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), as outlined in Civil Air Publication 612 (Police Air Operations Manual Part 1). This publication sets out the joint CAA/Home Office policy for the conduct of police air operations.
There are no restrictions on the times during which police helicopters, or any other helicopters, are allowed to fly. The deployment of the helicopter is an operational matter for the Commissioner.
The Commissioner tells me that the Metropolitan Police have a self imposed limitation on when they fly at night. This limitation runs from 2am until loam. Only when a life is likely to be saved will the helicopter fly during this period.