Police blimps were used to patrol the sky during the 2004 Republican National Convention , the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games and the 2004 Athens Olympic Games . The blimp '' Santos-Dumont '' , named for Alberto Santos-Dumont , operates in the Caribbean for the Special Anti-Crime Unit of Trinidad & Tobago ( SAUTT ) , providing security surveillance . During April 2009 , this blimp provided aerial surveillance of the 5th Summit of the Americas in Port-of-Spain . Greater Manchester Police began trial operations of a blimp in 2010 to provide surveillance for major events , which would be a cheaper alternative to the use of a helicopter in the long term . However , the blimp was only used on 18 occasions because of weather-related operational problems
5th Summit of the Americas
5th Summit of the Americas
Police aviation