Airport Police

Welcome to the home of the Boise Airport Police Department.

HISTORY & DEVELOPMENT:
Police services for Boise Airport were originally provided by the Boise Police Department. Many newly hired BPD Officers in the 1970's and 80's began their careers working at the airport.

Boise PD provided the FAA mandated protection for the airport, and also used the airport as a training grounds for new officers. Officers would work at the airport under the supervision of a Sergeant until openings occurred in the patrol division. Most then transferred to patrol. Some who stayed became the earliest Airport Police Officers.

The Boise Airport Director recognized the need to develop a Police organization dedicated to "airport" law enforcement. Thus, the Boise Airport Police Department was formed in December 1992, under the direction of an Airport Police Supervisor who reported to the Airport Director. Initially the department consisted of a Supervisor and seven Officers.

PERSONNEL & STAFFING:
The Airport Police Dept. is staffed 24 hours a day by approximately 25 full time officers, assisted by part-time officers and K-9 units. Airport police officers are required to be certified law enforcement officers through the state of Idaho, and all our officers hold at least basic POST certification. Our part-time officers are either currently working for another police department or are recently retired from neighboring law enforcement agencies.

Officers are trained to the First Responder level through the Idaho Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians. The airport has a "Heart-Start" electronic defibrillator and basic first aid equipment which the officers use when responding to medical emergencies. All officers are trained in the M-26 Air-taser gun, which is the newest less than lethal tool that is used widespread by law enforcement agencies across the nation. All airport officers are City of Boise employees and are hired through the City of Boise Human Resources Department at 601 W. Idaho Street, Boise, Idaho 83702, 208-384-3850

OFFICER DUTIES:
Airport Police Officers (commonly called "APOs") are trained in the multi-faceted aviation-specific duties required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Officers are required to become very familiar with federal laws regarding aviation security and operations. 

APOs also perform traditional patrol duties, such as traffic control and enforcement, taking accident and crime reports, making arrests for crimes and warrants, and patrol of the airport properties. Airport Officers respond to calls inside the terminal building, on the airfield, and to business and traffic concerns around the perimeter of the airport.

The primary requirement of the Airport Police, by Federal mandate, is the rapid response to the Security Checkpoint in the event of a security breach or prohibited items being brought through. Officers routinely respond to the checkpoint for found weapons, drugs, and other hazardous items.

In addition to police duties, officers routinely assist with a myriad of Airport Operations functions. APOs respond onto the airfield to conduct safety inspections, test runways for braking friction during snow activity, and to respond to in-flight emergencies. Some of our officers are trained to operate  the airports heavy equipment, and will assist with snow removal and fog dispersion operations. Fuel spills, wildlife incursions, debris on the runway anything that could affect the safety of the flying public comes into the realm of responsibility of the Airport Officer.

APOs acquire a good knowledge of aviation terminology and procedures, and must learn to communicate with Air Traffic Control. Airport officers monitor three separate radios in our police vehicles- the Police channels, the Airports base radio, and the Control Towers primary frequencies. It can get fairly hectic keeping up with the radio traffic during an incident on the airport!

Growth and Challenges:
With the population growth in the Treasure Valley and the rest of the region many people drive from 1-3 hours to fly from Boise there has been a tremendous increase in the number of people using the airport. In 1993 the airport had about 1.5 million traveling passengers. In 2005 this number had doubled to over 3 million passengers. These figures do not include the all the "meeters & greeters" that accompanied these passengers. The Department has recently expanded its staffing in an effort to keep up with the growth and proportional increase in call volume for the Airport Police.

In 2003, Boise Airport opened a new terminal building, new roadways, and changes to parking areas. Because of this, parking availability is often limited and traffic can reach nightmare proportions at times. It seems the airport is constantly "under construction". This provides many challenges for the officers, especially when dealing with traffic problems.

K-9 Teams