Police said drones will be deployed for daily patrols in the Border District and Kowloon West Region starting on Friday, marking the launch of a pilot programme aimed at advancing “digital policing” through innovative technology.

The three-month initiative seeks to improve public safety services, streamline frontline officer deployment and boost operational efficiency.

In the Border District, an automated drone docking system will be implemented to conduct patrols using predefined flight paths.

The drones will operate autonomously within designated zones, enhancing border surveillance efficiency while allowing police to allocate personnel more flexibly.

As for the Kowloon West Region, drones will be deployed for high-altitude anti-crime patrols. Police emphasised that this approach will broaden patrol coverage, accelerate response times and optimise resource distribution.

Tango Ko, superintendent of police at the key points and search division of the major events bureau, said all police drone operations will be conducted by certified remote pilots.

"Before every drone mission, they will have a comprehensive risk assessment, for example, the takeoff area, landing area and also to decide the flight path. We will make sure that the flight path is away from the pedestrian and also vehicular traffic density," he said.

"Apart from that, we will observe the on-site environmental conditions, the weather conditions, also the data transmission conditions, so making sure that we have a very safe flight.

"To enhance the safety, we have already installed those parachutes on those drones. In case they have any malfunctions, then the parachute will be effective."

Ko also stressed that flight plans are pre-approved and aligned with privacy regulations.

"We will put on a big banner at the entrances of those areas, making sure that the residents there will be well aware of the police operation with drones over there," he said.

"Apart from that, we will also dispatch the notice to the management office of those areas, making sure that and request them to put it on the notice board inside that estate, so making sure that the people there will be well aware of the drone patrol.

"Our drones will be flashing red and blue flashing lights during the drone operations, and also they will be marked with the reflective decal for identification."

Ko added that daily patrols focus on real-time monitoring, and that recording would only be activated when crime is detected.

Following the initial phase, police plan to expand the programme to the Peak and Cheung Chau, with a long-term vision of installing automated drone docking systems at all divisional stations to establish a “sky net.”