The police helicopter was in the air for more than an hour
A police helicopter was flying over Swansea late on Thursday night. Many were kept up by the noise of the the aircraft circling over the Townhill, Mount Pleasant and Sketty areas of the city from around 11pm until midnight. The National Police Air Service has now revealed the reason it was in the area.
It says that a crew from NPAS St Athan was diverted from a missing person search in Cardiff to support South Wales Police in containing a property, and was in the air for more than an hour.
South Wales Police explained that the incident played out following a potential sighting of a man carrying a firearm in the area. Never miss a Swansea story by signing up to our newsletter here.
A spokeswoman for the National Police Air Service (NPAS) said: “At 10.55pm on Thursday, June 19, after attending a missing person search in Cardiff, a police helicopter crew from NPAS St Athan was diverted to Swansea to support South Wales Police in containing a property during a police operation.
“Flying time on this task was one hour and three minutes.”And a spokesman for South Wales Police said: “The helicopter was deployed to assist following a potential sighting of a man carrying a firearm in the Townhill area of Swansea just before 11pm on Thursday, June 19.
“The incident was not as initially reported and all units were stood down shortly after.”
NPAS provides air support to all police forces across England and Wales, helping to “keep communities safe from the skies”.
It says it supports police operations with a wide range of tasks, including searching for missing people and wanted suspects, assisting with vehicle pursuits, supporting public order and counter-terrorism operations and providing aerial support during firearms incidents and other high-risk situations.
Its crews use state-of-the-art camera systems and maintain direct communication with ground officers and control rooms to deliver fast, coordinated responses.
NPAS was established in October 2012 following a national review by the Home Office.
It is delivered by West Yorkshire Police as the lead force – an arrangement unique in UK policing.
All 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales, along with British Transport Police, contribute funding to support the service.
It operates a fleet of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft from a network of bases across the country.
All flights are coordinated through the NPAS Operations Centre.
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