Six SkyDio systems, much the same ones that are part of the St. Cloud Police Department “Drones as First Responders” aerial fleet that went airborne late in 2025, ride in four patrol units spread across all shifts. (Photo/Ken Jackson)
The Kissimmee Police Department is working to keep up with technology just as hard as it’s keeping up with criminals and the people who need their help.
Welcome to the new age.
It’s launched a drone program that allows for aerial views of scenes and search areas since it came online last month.
Six SkyDio systems, much the same ones that are part of the St. Cloud Police Department “Drones as First Responders” aerial fleet that went airborne late in 2025, ride in four patrol units spread across all shifts with officers who trained with drone operators in St. Cloud and the Orange County Sheriff ’s Office. Two other units are housed at KPD for special events or downtown surveillance.
KPD Sgt. Charles Popp, the agency’s SkyDio program coordinator, said the units can be airborne in minutes, unlike a helicopter that needs upwards of 30 minutes to get deployed and skyward. He said they come in handy for calls for service on the lakefront if boaters get stuck in the hydrilla, or when visitors to Shingle Creek get disoriented.
“They provide unmatched perspective from the air,” Popp said. “For the size of our agency, having a manned (chopper) isn’t feasible. The ability to have this system deploy quickly and get that aerial perspective is something that’s becoming commonplace among the agencies we’ve spoken with.”
The units feature a spotlight for nighttime visuals, and a speaker allowing the operating officer to communicate with those the drone flies nearby. Officers on the ground, as well as those stationed at KPD, can see the same footage from the drone that the operator gets from the unit. That footage is recorded and logged into evidence, making it an extension of the officers’ body cameras when it comes to transparency.
“Just keeping up with technology,” Police Chief Charles Broadway said. “If you aren’t using something like this, then you’re falling behind.”
At a demonstration of the units last week, another officer noted that, thanks to the SkyDio’s 128x zoom capability, a drone still near KPD in downtown can identify a person at Kissimmee Gateway Airport.
The airport, like large Lake Toho, creates what Popp called “a unique challenge”, as the FAA maintains a flight ceiling around the airport, less than two miles west of KPD. That required criteria and a checklist for deployment, and a range of “within eyeshot.”
An eye that sees very, very well from the sky.
