East Tampa residents say police helicopters seem to always be flying above homes

TAMPA, Fla. - East Tampa residents are tired of Tampa police helicopters flying over their homes at night, but TPD told city council Thursday that the department’s eyes in the sky help officers curb crime on the ground.

"I've become as accustomed to the whirring blades of helicopters as I have the songs of birds in my backyard," southeast Seminole Heights resident Jason Marlow said.

Nick Machuca said he started tracking TPD’s helicopters on the FlightAware app.

TPD says they try to accommodate residents at night by flying higher. 

"There's pretty much always a helicopter in the sky at some point whether that's nighttime, daytime. Pretty much any time I open my flight tracking app, one of the three TPD helicopters is in the air," the Seminole Heights resident said.

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Machuca and Marlow sent screenshots of TPD helicopters’ flight plans to city council, which Marlow described as "endless loops, like spaghetti models of giant circles that never end."

City council members mentioned these "spaghetti models" to Tampa police Maj. Rich Mills, who spoke at the regular meeting Thursday.

TPD says that their helicopters are helpful for catching criminals.

"When you see the spaghetti model tighten up to that real tight orbiting – so they’re in one area it looks like – that’s when they’re actually orbiting because they see something. They’re actually responding to something. That should indicate that they’re there for a reason. So those individual emails that people are sending, that’s one flight," Mills said.

In a memo to city council, TPD said its helicopters are "an estimated 90% of the nighttime helicopter traffic in East Tampa with 71.6% of our flight time being in the evening or at night."

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At Thursday’s meeting, TPD said pilots are required to do in-flight infrastructure checks during set time periods of the day. And since most crime happens at night, they try to maximize airtime.

Mills played nighttime helicopter videos for city council, showing how the aviation unit has helped find weapons and suspects.

In May alone, the aviation unit helped recover 15 guns and capture suspects in 16 felony cases, according to TPD.

Residents say that TPD is constantly flying over their homes.

"Our police helicopters play a vital role in reducing crime and enhancing public safety. With their unique vantage point and aerial capabilities, police helicopters provide invaluable support in our crime-fighting efforts," Mills said.

"The real issue here is public safety and sometimes public safety is noisy," District 5 councilwoman Gwendolyn Henderson said.

TPD helicopters fly at 700 feet during the day and 1,000 feet or higher at night to minimize noise, Mills said. But residents argue there must be a quieter and more cost-effective solution.

"There has to be some kind of rulemaking that takes place around when and how these helicopters can be used. Because right now, it just feels like they're being deployed indiscriminately – but specifically to black and brown or predominantly black and brown neighborhoods – in Tampa," Machuca said.

Thursday’s 40-minute discussion ended without a vote or decision.