TX Sheriff’s MSCO Drone Takes Dive – Is Lost in Lake Conroe

Coming soon to a police force near you.
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Drones, MRAPs and military-style grass camouflage.

Divers spent Friday afternoon searching for a half-million dollar drone that crashed into Lake Conroe in Texas. The drone was almost entirely funded by Homeland Security Grants which were designated for the purchase of drones.
Via Montgomery County Police Reporter:

Friday morning, during training exercises with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Drone, something went wrong and it crashed into Lake Conroe. Divers from the Montgomery County Precinct 1 Dive Team spent much of the day searching the bottom of Lake Conroe for the almost $300,000 drone helicopter.

The drone which was purchased by Montgomery County in 2011 was almost entirely funded by Homeland Security Grants which were specifically designated for the purchase of drones.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office selected the 29 pound 7 foot helicopter from Vanguard Industries of Spring, Texas.

Since its purchase, the drone has been used very little due to new FAA rules that stated drones must not weigh more than 25 pounds. The Shadow Hawk was 29.

When it was first unveiled in 2011 Congressman Brady was present.

Brady commended Sheriff Gage for his “aggressive enforcement of public safety in Montgomery County,” and said the Shadow Hawk was more evidence of that. The Congressman further pointed out that Montgomery County is one of the 25 fastest growing in the United States and is mostly unincorporated, giving Sheriff Gage responsibility for a huge area.

Brady said he saw a demonstration of the Shadow Hawk by Vanguard months ago and was impressed with its flexibility and cost effectiveness. According to Brady, the device costs about $40 per hour to operate, versus $500 per hour for a manned helicopter.

It was purchased to assist SWAT Teams in their operations.

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Jim Hoft is the founder and editor of The Gateway Pundit, one of the top conservative news outlets in America. Jim was awarded the Reed Irvine Accuracy in Media Award in 2013 and is the proud recipient of the Breitbart Award for Excellence in Online Journalism from the Americans for Prosperity Foundation in May 2016. In 2023, The Gateway Pundit received the Most Trusted Print Media Award at the American Liberty Awards.

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