Phill Rawlins Online - Manchester aviation and transport photography

West Yorkshire Police Air Support Unit

G-YPOL, an MD Helicopters MD902 Explorer based at Carr Green, and the first MD900 series aircraft delivered to any UK police force.

West Yorkshire Police’s air support aircraft was an MD Helicopters MD902 Explorer registered G-YPOL, based at Carr Green. It was the first MD900 series aircraft delivered to any UK police force, and it carried a colour scheme unlike any other: most police helicopters of the period had a yellow upper surface with dark blue below, while G-YPOL was finished differently.

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The aircraft

West Yorkshire Police MD902 Explorer G-YPOL on the ground
G-YPOL on the ground. The MD902’s most distinctive feature is the NOTAR tail boom: no tail rotor at all, which makes the aircraft markedly quieter and safer to work around on the ground.
West Yorkshire Police MD902 Explorer in flight
In flight. The MD902 was designed around a large, unobstructed cabin, which is exactly what an air support role needs.
Detail view of the West Yorkshire Police MD902 Explorer
Detail view. Sensor mounting and the aircraft’s unusual colour scheme, which differed from the yellow and blue used by most UK police helicopters.
Cockpit of the West Yorkshire Police MD902 Explorer
Inside the aircraft. The cockpit, with the equipment displays used by the observer.

About the MD902 Explorer

The MD902 Explorer is the eight-seat development of the MD900, and is unusual among helicopters in having no tail rotor. Instead it uses the NOTAR system: a fan inside the tail boom blows air out through slots along the side of the boom, and the resulting circulation produces sideways thrust to counteract the torque of the main rotor.

The practical benefits are exactly the ones a police operator cares about. Without a tail rotor there is nothing at the back of the aircraft for a person on the ground to walk into, the aircraft is significantly quieter — which matters when you are trying to observe something without being noticed — and the tail boom is safer to work around in confined spaces.

It also has a large, flat-floored cabin with a rear clamshell door, which makes it straightforward to install a full sensor suite and to carry observers and equipment.

What has changed since

West Yorkshire Police’s air support arrangements were later reorganised, and the force’s aircraft and bases changed with them, as happened across the country. Carr Green is no longer the base it was.