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Burkburnett adopts drone program for police and fire, funds purchase from capital improvement fund
Summary
The board approved a joint police/fire drone program after a presentation by Fire Chief Dan King, passing an ordinance to allow a roughly $20,000 equipment purchase and noting $3,000/yr maintenance; policies, pilot Part 107 certification and flight-logging software will govern operations.
The Burkburnett Board of Commissioners approved moving forward with a joint public-safety drone program for the fire and police departments after a presentation by Fire Chief Dan King.
King said the program would be administered by the city’s emergency management office with one commander and two team leaders (a fire lieutenant and a police sergeant). He described the proposed platform—a DJI Matrice 4TD—highlighting thermal imaging, high-zoom optics, built-in AI tracking, night capability, loudspeaker and spotlight functions and mapping features. King said every flight would be logged in drone-management software that produces FAA reports and training logs.
On costs, King said the one-time equipment package is about $20,000 and that annual maintenance and software at this scale are expected to be roughly $3,000. He said pilot operators will be required to hold the FAA Part 107 remote pilot certificate; the city intends to reimburse pilots for certification costs after they complete training.
King said the program’s policies will limit firefighter pilots during active fire suppression—policies will prioritize keeping firefighter staff at fire scenes and using police pilots for aerial support when necessary. He also described potential nonemergency uses such as structure and tower inspections, event oversight and assistance with water-system inspections.
The board adopted Ordinance 1107 to amend the 2026 capital improvement fund so the purchase can proceed; staff said the purchase will be funded from the capital improvement fund and not by new tax revenue. Commissioners asked staff to prepare the budget amendment enabling procurement and next steps for training and deployment.
What’s next: staff to finalize the amendment enabling fund transfer, place the equipment order, and return with finalized policies and a training schedule for pilots.
