Skip to comments.
Police Use Helicopter for Doughnut Run
Reuters ^
Posted on 10/08/2001 11:45:31 AM PDT by madrussian
ALBUQUERQUE (Reuters) - An Albuquerque policeman and his pilot face disciplinary measures after using a police helicopter this week to swoop in for a midnight snack of doughnuts, officials said on Friday.
The officer and the civilian pilot were on night patrol over the city in a Kiowa OH-58 helicopter when they landed in a vacant lot next to a Krispy Kreme doughnut store around 1 a.m. on Thursday morning.
``The contracted pilot and a police officer landed the copter early in the morning, ran in and grabbed a dozen, came back out and took off,'' Albuquerque Police Department spokesman Brian McCutcheon said.
``I don't know whose brain child it was, but it's quite an ugly child,'' he said.
McCutcheon said the event was being investigated as a possible misuse of city funds as well as for safety reasons, although he added there was no specific protocol for this case because it had ever happened before.
``We've been given no reasonable excuse as to why they would even think they could do this. But there could be some very serious ramifications,'' he said.
An eyewitness told the Albuquerque Journal that he saw the APD helicopter circle the Krispy Kreme and land in a nearby dirt field.
``I was angry, and I'm still kind of angry. That's my tax dollars, your tax dollars. You've got no business flying in to get doughnuts,'' said Keith Turner, who works nearby and was taking a smoke break when he saw the chopper swoop in,
The cost to the department of running a Kiowa, including fuel and maintenance, is $80 an hour, McCutcheon said.
A Krispy Kreme employee who asked not to be identified said he didn't see why people were making a big deal of the unusual doughnut run.
``Cops got to eat, too,'' he said.
TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS:
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-20, 21-40, 41-51 next last
To: madrussian
As long as they were Krispy Kreme donuts, I don't see the problem here.
To: madrussian
Oh come on, give me a break, these guys fly around the city all night, they got hungry, they circled the donut shop to find a place to land that was safe, then landed, got their donuts and were back in the air, what, 10 minutes max.
Let's have a reality check here please, I think it was rather funny, and so what if they get a few sticky donuts on the inside of the helicopter!! LOL
They might have wanted to ask a cruiser to pick up the donuts and meet them at the airport, but that would have taken an hour and 3 cops time. They weren't in the middle of an emergency call or something, so live and let live!!
3
posted on
10/08/2001 11:56:57 AM PDT
by
Aric2000
To: hillsborofox
Ummmm... Krispy Kreme Donuts.
To: madrussian
``I don't know whose brain child it was, but it's quite an ugly child,'' he said. Personally, I don't see much difference between it flying and sitting on the ground. Not that big a deal, as a one-time stunt.
All I gotta say is, that's a great quote.
5
posted on
10/08/2001 12:03:11 PM PDT
by
r9etb
To: madrussian
This is funny! When my oldest son was a little guy, he loved "Hill Street Blues." At that time of his life, he wanted to become a policeman so that he could eat a lot of donuts!
6
posted on
10/08/2001 12:04:28 PM PDT
by
DallasDeb
To: madrussian
Does that go for vehicle patrolmen too?
7
posted on
10/08/2001 12:06:56 PM PDT
by
TADSLOS
To: madrussian
I don't see the big deal here - don't the kops in helos get coffee breaks like the donut suckers in patrol cars?
To: from occupied ga
I don't see the big deal here - don't the kops in helos get coffee breaks like the donut suckers in patrol cars? They probably do, but their regular landing spot is probably too far from the nearest Krispy Kreme.
To: madrussian
This is great free advertising for Krispy Kreme.
Although, I am deeply disturbed by the perpetuation of this police stereotype.
To: madrussian
KK should by the lot and build a heli-pad for the Police Department.
It would be a good investment!
Noslrac
11
posted on
10/08/2001 12:12:50 PM PDT
by
Noslrac
To: madrussian
I don't think the cops did anything that wrong. I seen cops go through drive through windows in their cruisers. We've stopped the engine and grabbed burgers and soda on the way back from a fire call. If there was no air traffic otherwise, and no risk of hitting telephone/electrical wires, and the landing area was big enough and clear enough, go for it.
12
posted on
10/08/2001 12:12:53 PM PDT
by
Wm Bach
To: madrussian
The cost to the department of running a Kiowa, including fuel and maintenance, is $80 an hour, McCutcheon said. Give'em 20 bucks & call it even.
To: Noslrac
KK should by the lot and build a heli-pad for the Police Department. If there are Starbucks inside grocery stores, why can't there be Krispy Kremes in every police station?
To: madrussian
The only folks I can think of who would complain about this are folks who haven't had a fresh Krispy Kreme.
(Hmmm. Maybe we could set up a Krispy Kreme in Kabul and offer a free dozen for every member of the Taliban or Al-Queda turned in.)
To: Wm Bach
I don't think the cops did anything that wrongI agree. They probably have a union established break time. They can hardly take it while flying around. Now if they'd shot a couple of innocent bystanders or held a swat raid on the wrong place, I'd have a problem with that, but just taking a work break when I'm sure that they have one in their contract shouldn't be a problem
To: Wm Bach
I seen ...I sing, icing...oof!
Glazed donut bump for the good guys.
17
posted on
10/08/2001 12:28:07 PM PDT
by
Wm Bach
To: madrussian
Cops eating donuts is a great American tradition.
To: madrussian; OLDWORD
You gotta read this one, my friend. I agree with the first poster who said, "As long as they were Krispy Kremes, I don't see the problem here." Cheers, Billybob
To: Aric2000
I can vision the next K.K. Super Bowl commercial! Pass me a glazed dipped, please.
20
posted on
10/09/2001 6:19:05 PM PDT
by
OLDWORD
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-20, 21-40, 41-51 next last
Disclaimer:
Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual
posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its
management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the
exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson