Editor's note:

Fritz Reber is widely considered the “Godfather of DFR.” As the Captain and UAS Commander at the Chula Vista Police Department, he developed and championed the Drone as First Responder (DFR) concept in 2017. After retiring in May 2018, Reber worked closely with the department's leadership to establish the world’s first DFR program when Chula Vista was selected for the Integration Pilot Program (IPP) based on his operations concept. The program's first official mission occurred in October 2018, and since then, the Chula Vista Police Department has conducted over 20,000 DFR missions from four different sites across the city.

DFR stems from Reber’s passion and expertise in enhancing emergency response. He is also the visionary and co-inventor of Live911, a groundbreaking technology that streams 911 call audio and location data directly to first responders. Developed in coordination with DFR, Live911’s ability to provide real-time visual and auditory information is proving critical for lifesaving efforts.  

Following a year with CVPD, Reber served as the Head of Public Safety Integration at Skydio for four years before joining Aerodome in March 2024. Here is his account of why he chose to join Aerodome.

I first heard of Aerodome when I learned Brett Kanda came to work for Aerodome CEO and co-founder, Rahul Sidhu.

I knew Rahul, and was very aware of his impressive background. He championed the second Drone as First Responder (DFR) Program in the world at Redondo Beach PD and had more than 1000 DFR missions under his belt. I also knew of Rahul’s prior success with co-founder Kenaniah Cerny developing SPIDR Tech, a 911-related software solution.

As for Brett Kanda, he needs no introduction to anyone in the public safety drone space. Brett is widely considered one of the brightest, most knowledgeable, and well respected in the industry. He could work anywhere, and for anyone.

A few weeks later I ran into both of them at a trade show and was eager to learn what they were up to. Of course, as the prior UAS Commander from Chula Vista PD, learning that Aerodome’s sole purpose and mission was providing a turn-key and next-generation DFR solution was extremely interesting to me personally. Aerodome is a solution designed by and for public safety professionals. It has all the key features and capabilities that the DFR space has been asking for and many they didn’t know they needed. Beyond the best-in-class software with an amazing and intuitive user interface, Aerodome has an ingenious business plan that makes air support affordable to almost any agency, a solution that gives customers fully-remote, fully-automated, multi-drone and multi-station DFR capabilities, and a deep bench with expertise designing and building world class software, who understand DFR to its core. I think one of the things that makes Aerodome so future-proof is their commitment to always integrate with the best-in-class hardware solutions on the market, ensuring that their customers constantly have the best options available to them.

Over the following months I would get unsolicited input from people who had hands-on experience with Aerodome. These were knowledgeable public safety operators whose opinions I respected. They would tell me that I had to check out Aerodome for myself. “They thought of everything,” was the common refrain. So when the opportunity came at the DFR 2.0 Conference in Chula Vista to see it up close, I jumped at the chance. Rahul walked me through the software and described again his vision for the company and it became clear to me that Aerodome was delivering the best DFR turn-key solution on the planet. When I saw the advanced detect-and-avoid system they had deployed in southern California, I knew the chance to join this dream team in a senior leadership role was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.

DFR is primarily about responding to and managing critical incidents. I’ve spent much of my later career developing operational and technological solutions to improve emergency response and critical incident management, so it’s both humbling and a source of pride to see concepts like DFR take shape, receive wide adoption, and save lives. And everything I have learned about Aerodome, the product and the team, tells me that Aerodome is the way public safety agencies will want to respond to and manage critical incidents for their communities.

It is for all these reasons that I’m eager and honored to join the Aerodome Team.