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.

One of the instances it was used was on Thursday, February 4 to help officers search for a man who had abandoned a suspected stolen vehicle near Bromsgrove.

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.

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