Dubai Police To Fight Crime With Flying Motorcycles

Dubai police will soon have access to Star Wars-style flying motorbikes — popularly known as hoverbikes.

The announcement was made in collaboration with a Russian firm Hoversurf —which designed the craft — at the Gulf Information Technology Exposition (GITEX) that took place last week.

Launched under Hoversurf’s pre-existing Scorpion platform, the fully-electric hoverbikes are termed as “human carrying drones” by the company. They will be able to transport police officers to accident spots and crime scenes avoiding traffic.

The Scorpion-3 (S-3) hoverbikes are capable of flying at a height of five meters and can carry one person a time. They are designed to fly over congested traffic areas in emergency situations, First Sergeant Ali Ahmad Mohammad said.

"The bike can also fly without a passenger and can go up to six kilometers (3.7 miles). It can fly for 25 minutes and can carry up to 300 kilograms of weight at a speed of 70kph,” Mohammad added.

The Scorpion-3 hoverbikes have an inbuilt safety system that helps the pilot in case he loses control over the gadget or if the hoverbike is moving too fast or too slow. However, it is unclear if the model that the Dubai police will add to its list will have the safety feature, Mashable reported.

It resembles a hybrid between a quadcopter drone and a motorbike and is controlled by four rotors. These hoverbikes are also fitted with eight cameras that can stream live at the police station.

In a Facebook post on Oct. 8, Hoversurf CEO Alexander Atamanov introduced the hoverbike along with a video. “Flying motorcycle in all its glory is light and compact. Successful trials in extreme conditions - heat and heat. This is a special version of hoverbike for the Dubai police. The pilot's uniforms are also provided by the police,” he wrote.

The police department also unveiled a smart electric motorbike and robotic vehicles fitted with multiple cameras to identify reckless drivers and rule breakers. The robotic vehicles have been fitted with biometric software that can scan criminals without any glitch.

“It can recognize people in any area and identify suspicious objects and can track suspects. It will be deployed at tourist destinations in Dubai. It has cameras and will be linked to the command room,” Brigadier Khalid Nasser Al Razooqi, director of the Smart Services Department at Dubai Police said, according to ABC News.

Earlier this year, the Dubai police launched water jetpack systems for firefighting from the air. According to an ABC News report, “The firefighter uses a jetpack to rise above a bridge, by using water pressure from the attached Jet Ski, before using a fire hose to douse a car which is made to look like it is alight.”

Named "Dolphin," the firefighting system was designed to cut the traveling time of firefighters in case of an emergency.

Video: Hoverbike Scorpion-3 Trailer 2017