Federal Way committee forwards drone-as-first-responder pilot to council after extended briefing

Federal Way police officials presented a detailed plan on Dec. 16 to implement a Drone-as-First-Responder (DFR) pilot, and the committee voted to forward the proposal to the Jan. 6, 2026 council meeting for a final decision.

Commander Mike Coffey described DFR as a system of docked, networked drones that can be dispatched remotely to provide "eyes on scene" in under two minutes in some agencies. Coffey said the recommended vendor partnership is Skydio (hardware/software) integrated through the city's current Axon Master Service Agreement; the proposal would begin with two docks and two drones stationed at City Hall and the Performing Arts and Event Center, with a five-year contract and time-limited discounts if executed before Jan. 31, 2026.

Coffey and staff highlighted operational uses including in-progress incident assessment, search-and-rescue, drug-interdiction overwatch, collision-scene management and tactical overwatch for warrant service. He emphasized collision-avoidance and a camera-lock feature that keeps the camera pointed at the horizon during transit; "when an officer gets there, [the pilot] can unlock that if they deem that it's necessary," he said. Coffey listed Skydio/Axon as NDAA-compliant and contrasted them with other vendors evaluated for price, operability and supply-chain origin.

Council members asked detailed technical and policy questions: whether drones would replace officers (Coffey said they would not), FAA requirements and beyond-visual-line-of-sight waivers (Coffey said the city would obtain the necessary waiver), whether pilots would be commissioned officers (Coffey said yes), battery life, geofencing and how data would be stored and used (media would be downloaded into the city’s Axon Evidence portal with chain-of-custody protections). Several members also raised concerns about immigrant-community trust and compliance with the Keep Washington Working Act.

Committee members moved and seconded a motion to forward the DFR proposal to the Jan. 6 council agenda; the motion passed unanimously. Staff said they would present final contract documents, funding specifics and any required agreements at that meeting. Coffey told the committee the first year would be paid from state seizure funds and subsequent years would be budgeted in future cycles.