FLYING drones have been used by police five times during their first week on trial.

The unmanned drones were used to take pictures of crashes, look for a missing person and hunt for a suspect believed to have run off from what was thought to be a stolen vehicle.

The technology is being used as part of a six month trial by West Mercia Police and Warwickshire Police.

Inspector Damian Sowrey, who is overseeing the trial, said: "During the trial drones will be used in two ways - they may be deployed to an incident as a resource to assist or they may be used in a pre-planned operation, for example, to help manage public safety at an event.

"During the first week of the trial, despite challenging wet and windy weather conditions, the drone has helped us gather evidence by taking aerial photographs of road traffic collisions and also assisted officers search an area by providing an aerial view that can be viewed from the ground.

The drone was first used on Monday, January 25 to help officers looking for the victim of a road traffic collision near Evesham.

Officers were concerned for the welfare of the man who was not with his vehicle.

The drone was used to see if he was still in the area.

However, he was found when he later rang police to say he was safe and well.

The drone was again used on Thursday, February 4 to help officers search for a man who had abandoned a suspected stolen vehicle near Bromsgrove.

It was also used to take evidential photos following a crash near Shifnal and to look for a missing person from Nuneaton.

It was again used to look for two people who had been in a crash in Bridgenorth but were not with the vehicle.

They were not found and the enquiry was passed to a neighbouring force.

Inspector Sowrey added: "Whilst there are a lot of benefits to the use of drones, we are keen to reassure the public that public safety is of paramount importance at all times.

"Policies and procedures have been put in place to ensure that air operations using these small drones are carried out safely, ethically and in accordance with relevant CAA regulations."

Each drone is controlled by a fully trained operator who has physical responsibility for the direction and control of the aircraft.

A second observer is responsible for operating the photographic equipment attached to the device.

The data the drones gather is held on a stand alone system within West Mercia Police accessible by both forces.

The rules that govern the storage of information are the same as body-worn cameras and CCTV.

A decision on whether to formally adopt the drones will be made after the trial.