Ross Perot Jr has donated a helicopter to the Dallas Police Department. Perot landed the Bell 407 on the plaza in front of Dallas City Hall Wednesday morning.
"We cannot be a great city without an incredible police force, and we are blessed to have this great police force," Perot says. "We want to continue it, build it, and every day, we want to make it better."
"This donation alleviates financial burden on the city from aircraft acquisition," Police Chief Eddie Garcia says. "Adding this aircraft will extend maintenance intervals among the fleet and afford less downtime, allowing a helicopter to always be available."
Dallas Police say Bell 407 can fly up to 160 miles an hour and carry a pilot and five passengers. They say the helicopter can also stay in the air for three hours, twice as long as helicopters in the department's fleet now.
Garcia says the helicopter will help with surveillance, search and rescue calls and high water rescues. He says helicopters also give police a safer way to monitor suspects during chases.
"Often times, people have asked me what the biggest difference is from where I was in California to here in Texas," Garcia says. "One of the things I always say is the support: the support from our community, support from our businesses, the support you all have for the men and women in this police department that, quite frankly, I'm not used to."
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