How Fast Are Police Helicopters? A Look At Average Top Speed

Police departments all across the United States have helicopters to help them perform actions that otherwise wouldn't be possible. When there's a high-speed chase on the local news, it's the eye in the sky keeping tabs on the suspect, relaying their location to ground units and keeping them privy to pertinent information. But high-speed pursuits aren't the only situation where helicopters improve policing. They also transport officers, act as a deterrent, perform reconnaissance, and respond in a timely manner to emergency calls. When they are on these missions, however, police helicopters don't travel at their maximum speeds.

The average cruising speed for a police helicopter is around 100 miles per hour, but if they need to get somewhere faster, many can travel as fast as 170 mph. There are approximately 1,000 police helicopters used in the United States, with the New York Police Department flying their first one in 1948.

Of course not all aircraft are built the same, so the speed depends on the helicopter's model. The Louisiana State Police flies the Bell 407, a model that recorded one of the fastest helicopter flights ever. However, there are choppers used by larger police departments than can travel faster. No matter the speed, traveling in a straight line without concern for traffic helps law enforcement arrive at the scene of a crime in a matter of minutes. 

Police helicopters don't come off the assembly line branded as one. Different departments around the world use different helicopters from multiple manufacturers. Bell — the company behind the U.S. Army's workhorse Huey helicopter — manufactures several choppers that American police departments favor. The New York City Police Department uses the Bell 429 and Bell 412, which are both civilian versions of larger military choppers. The Bell 429 can get up to a max cruise speed of 155 knots (178 mph) whereas the 412 only reaches 122 knots (140 mph).

The 429 is at the upper end of what most police helicopters can reach, and it's considerably faster than those used by California departments. The California Highway Patrol and Los Angeles Police Department both use the Airbus H125 helicopter, which can reach a maximum cruise speed of 136 knots (157 mph). A large number of police departments in North America switched the H125 in 2023, including the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Police, Kansas Highway Patrol, and York Regional Police in Ontario, Canada.

The Bell 407 used by Louisiana's State Police can go up to 133 knots (153 mph). On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, the National Police Air Service — which supports England and Wales — utilizes helicopters made by Eurocopter. That's the brand responsible for one of the best attack helicopters ever used in war. The EC-145 can go as fast as 133 knots (153 mph) while the EC-135 has a slight edge at 137 knots (157 mph).