Picture this:
You are an Area Car driver. You are a highly trained police driver. You are trained to carry out pursuits. You are also a very experienced officer..
So now that you have the idea of who you are... you now get the scene setting phase.
You are pulling on to a dual carriageway down the slip road when you spot a car going through in your direction at high speed, you catch the index plate as your headlights hit back of the vehicle. You start trying to catch up and pass the index that you got.
The vehicle is stolen.
The vehicle is a V8 BMW. Something capable of very high speeds and well, lets just say that your average police car is a gutless diesel and it's overloaded with traffic cones and signs! You keep your distance trying not to spook the driver of the stolen BMW up ahead.
You have not activated your blue lights because you are trying to get other units to come on to the road ahead of your location. You know that if you activate blues then it's all over.
Here goes...
A traffic unit comes steaming up the road behind you..
it goes past you..
the blues have been on all this time..
the BMW ahead of you (remember it's a V8), can see all the blue lights on the traffic car now...
so puts his foot down.......
You stand down because you know there is NO WAY that you can keep up or catch the BMW now all due to incompetence..
Less than a minute later all you hear on the radio is "TOTAL LOSS, TOTAL LOSS"
Great move. Specially considering that the units trying to get ahead of this pursuit were still a minute away from the area they needed to be at.
I talked with the area car driver on the next shift I worked with him. Let's just say that he was very pissed off.
but isn't the traffic car's lights on because it's steaming up the road, and needs to have them on?
ReplyDeleteit was all about keeping an eye on the vehicle until such time as there were units in place at the front of this pursuit to try and bring it to a safe stop.
ReplyDeleteok, I'm with you now.
ReplyDeleteRun silent run deep, get everyone u can there then show out.
ReplyDeleteMP9000
Been there and done it. Got fast car now and hate it when traffic show up. They seem to think they know best and always fuck it up.
ReplyDeleteNever mind they will come again
Regards.
I've seen similar - but as an advanced driver, I wouldn't want to drive blattijg across the county at speeds over a ton in the dark with no lights.
ReplyDeleteJust read the news - a cop just recently found guilty of death by dangerous, doing exactly what you said, following and catching up to a vehicle with no blues.
Better a spooked bandit car and no arrest than an injured MOP and a reg 9.
At some point the units would have to activate blues to stop him anyway, and on a dual carriageway is the best time with less chance of pedestrian casualties if he does run for it.
In our force, it wouldn't matter if units got in front of him, as we'd still need to attempt the stop from behind, and with advanced driving training there's no way I'd place my vehicle in front of a powerful bandit vehicle on a dark dual carriageway.
Driving standards are changing in my force, but that brings an attitude change that isn't always welcomed or correct.
Or a long time here we had two main driver classifications, which were pretty much basic and advanced area car drivers. Then recently we introduced "response" drivers, who have less skill, training and experience than the advanced drivers but are all excited at being allowed to drive with two tones and feel they know best.
I don't expect non advanced drivers to bow to me in my presence, but there isn't much respect for our skills. In the same way as I would respect a firearms officers skills and acknowledge they know what they are doing, it makes sense that in some situations the advanced traffic officers really do know what they are doing - and might be driving as per their training and experience dictates.
Rant mode = 'off."
Ummmm, I think you are misunderstanding me here.. they still had headlights on..
ReplyDeleteThe driver in question was an Advanced driver. I think he may have even gone over to traffic since this incident. I trust in his judgement just as I would trust in yours if you were my driver.
(By the way no, I was not present during this incident, I just relayed what I heard on the radio plus what the Area Car driver told me)
Ever thought of having your own blog RHC? it could be quite interesting, I'd be interested to know what your area is like..
RHC,
ReplyDeleteas an advanced driver I concur that we do have greater responsibilities than standard or this new "pursuit trained" class, who still can't exceed 20 over.
I think that the traffic officer concerned was rash as he took the initiative without checking that all the support was in place. Air support was obviously not teed up and who knows what his tactical resolution was meant to be.
White hat syndrome maybe?
Regards.
RHC
ReplyDelete"I don't expect non advanced drivers to bow to me in my presence......there isn't much respect for our skills."
I would be understandably frustrated if that were to happen. In MetroCity where we have billy basic, response and advanced, it is ALWAYS considered etiquette to yeald to the Area car if you're going to the same shout. In a pursuit it's mandatory.
The white hats do seem to think that they are the one stop shop for anything occurring on tarmac and do try to take over as lead vehicle from another advanced driver in an ident vehicle - which they shouldn't. The only difference being the paintwork, the lead vehicle is the lead vehicle.
MP9000
MP9000 - unless you're still stuck with an athsmatic old Vectra which couldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding - that is , when it's not 54'd!
ReplyDeleteR/T
ReplyDelete54'd? What's that mean? Is it the same as our officially pronounced "Fucked"?
Regards.
R/T - BMWs a gogo baby.
ReplyDeleteThe Vectras are appalling. Aside from the inner boroughs everyone seems to be getting the Beemers now. Happy days.
MP9000
This is great. Just the comments area is spurning debates and all. Love it.
ReplyDeleteErm, why not press the stop button and disable the offending vehicle?
ReplyDeleteOr we could just pause the game right? ;-)
ReplyDeleteNever seen a stop button for disabling vehicles, though it sounds like a brilliant idea to me, but I think it's something that still remains in sci-fi.