City Police Helicopter Spotlight Operator Admits Half The Time He’s Just Showing Off

By: James Olsen
Crab Staff Writer

BALTIMORE – The spotlight operator of the Baltimore City Police Helicopter admitted this week that half of the time he is shining the light on the ground below, he is just showing off for the pilots and patrol cops. Ronnie “The Third Pilot” Davies, confessed that more often than not, he just shines the light in order to get the attention of the pilots and his superiors in order to make a good name for himself.

“Don’t get me wrong here, the chopper is vital in crime fighting. When we are in pursuit of someone, or providing air cover to a situation on the ground, that light is serving a purpose.”, explained Davies. “However, when we are just doing the rounds, waiting for a support request, I just show off my skills on how to make that light do things it wasn’t even designed to do.”

Davies’ claim is that one day, he will take the helm of the current Baltimore City Police helicopter if he is able to show the Department that his spotlight skills are second to none.

“I think that if I can show them my good stuff, I will become the heir to the pilot’s chair.”, said Davies.

Another point Davies makes is the difficulty of the actual maneuvers that he makes with the light, for which some have been given names by him.

“First off, the chopper rarely hovers perfectly level. We are always moving and always on an angle, so I need to anticipate what the aircraft is going to do before I can light up the ground.”, explained Davies. “Then there are the moves like the ‘Stop On A Dime’ where I can make that beam stay in one spot no matter what the chopper does, or the ‘Alley Jumper’ where I can sweep an alley, turn off the beam, them sweep another alley without having to shine the light on any houses.”

Sources close to the BPD have informed the Crab that there has been talk about eliminating the spotlight operator’s job, but the talent Davies has shown has always prevented that from happening.

“Hey, I just do my job. But, I am the best in the business.” , asserted Davies.

While many cities have police choppers, the BPD can proudly claim to have one the most skilled spotlight operators in law enforcement in America.