NSW Police will officially launch PolAir-Remote – an Australian first policing aviation capability using drones that will boost police resources – in Moree today.

The drones have been trialled in Moree successfully for more than a month, and assisted police to locate and arrest a 17-year-old boy and an 18-year-old man in relation to an aggravated break-and-enter at a Merindah Avenue address in Moree in January.

PolAir-Remote, a collaboration between Aviation Command and Technology and Communication Services Command, will see remotely-piloted drones being used to assist operational police in responding to and investigating incidents.

NSW Police Deputy Commissioner for Regional NSW Field Operations, Paul Pisanos, said PolAir-Remote was a demonstration of the NSW Police’s commitment to technological advancement in policing.

“PolAir-Remote is an Australian first. This is the first time drones will be used in this capacity – where they will be remotely piloted without the need for an on-site pilot – by a police force in the country,” Mr Pisanos said.

“The drones are an expansion of the existing aviation capabilities used across the state and will support frontline police in preventing, disrupting and responding to criminal activity in Moree.

“We have worked closely with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority for the implementation of this technology and I want to thank them for their strong support.

“The trial has so far proven to be successful in tackling regional crime and giving the region a boost in operational resources.

“I want to reassure the community that PolAir-Remote will only be used for operational and investigative purposes,” he said.

At a debriefing in January about PolAir-Remote, (from left) Superintendent Chris Nicholson from NSW Police Aviation Command, NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Andrew Holland, New England Police District Superintendent Chris McKinnon and Moree Plains mayor Susannah Pearse at a briefing session about the trial of drones in Moree. PolAir-Remote will officially be launched in Moree today.

The use of drones will allow regional police to utilise aerial assets without the need for an on-site pilot. Instead, the drones will be remotely piloted from a ‘Remote Operations Centre’ at Bankstown Airport, with real-time video being fed back to operational police.

Moree is the first location in which the drones have been installed and trialled to support frontline police in preventing, disrupting and responding to criminal activity.

Since their installation on the rooftop of the Moree Police Station in early January, two drones have been activated to co-ordinate successful responses and arrests for assaults, break-and-enters, vehicle recoveries.

They have also assisted during an Operation Soteria surge.

Drones helped make significant arrests last month when police were called to a house on Merindah Avenue, Moree, following reports of a break-and-enter.

Police attended and were told four males had broken into the house and allegedly assaulted two residents. Police commenced an investigation and, following inquiries, at about 3pm on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, with the assistance of PolAir-Remote, police attended two addresses in Moree and arrested a 17-year-old boy and an 18-year-old man.

The boy was charged with aggravated break-and-enter and commit serious indictable offence-use violence, be carried in conveyance taken without consent of owner and hinder or resist police officer in the execution of duty.

He is due to face a children’s court in February.

The man has been charged with aggravated break-and-enter and commit serious indictable offence-use violence, commit section 112(2) offence and disseminate and be carried in conveyance taken without consent of owner.

He is due to face Moree Local Court in March.

The drones will also assist police in providing situational awareness during public safety incidents and other emergencies, including search-and-rescue operations and missing people searches.

The drones are housed in a self-contained box where they launch, land and recharge.

The trial in Moree will run for six months, with the technology set to expand to other locations in the future.