John Monaghan spent nearly three decades in law enforcement, building a career where clarity, preparation, and real-world execution mattered.
Over 28 years on the job—as a patrol officer, detective, and later a supervisor—he saw firsthand how the right tools could make difficult situations safer and more manageable.
So when drones began entering law enforcement, John didn’t see them as toys. He saw them as practical tools.
He volunteered to help launch his department’s drone unit, earned his Part 107 certificate, and eventually became the program’s drone coordinator—overseeing training, policy development, equipment, and real-world deployments.
John retired in 2023. Today he works as an in-person flight instructor for UAV Coach as well as running JRM Drone Services. Through his company, he trains public safety agencies in how to use drones and does commercial drone projects, doing everything from aerial imagery and mapping to media work.
This is the story of how John Monaghan took his public safety drone experience and turned it into a second career in retirement.
From Police Work to Drone as First Responder
John’s drone journey began in 2016, the year the FAA launched the Part 107 rules.
The chief of his police department—Ben Salem Township Police Department, just north of Philadelphia—saw drones showcased at a conference, and decided he wanted to start using them.
The chief put out a call for anyone who wanted to volunteer to get their Part 107, and John raised his hand.
John dove in head first, watching every video he could, learning about drone technology, and getting comfortable with drone regulations and the operating discipline that public safety flying demands.
“By default, I wound up being the coordinator for the unit,” John says. “Training. Maintenance. New ideas. Policies and procedures. Whatever it took to keep the drone program moving forward, I was happy to do it.”
Seeing the Impact of Drones in Police Work
Over the years, the drone unit grew into a substantial program.
By the time John retired, it was a nine-person team with 14 drones. And they weren’t just practicing. They were using their drones regularly in the field, in fast-moving situations.
As the drone program developed, John pushed his department to explore starting a Drone as First Responder (DFR) program. He helped them run a summer-long trial to see what was possible when drones could launch quickly and provide real-time awareness while officers moved in.
“We had a retail theft suspect hop on a bus, and the drone tracked it so officers could position themselves,” John says. That led to an arrest. But even when there’s no arrest, the drone still pays off—confirming locations, maintaining safe distance, and giving officers real-time information they wouldn’t otherwise have.”
That early experience became the foundation of what John teaches now.
He didn’t just learn to fly. He learned how to make drones useful under real-world conditions, with real pressure, constraints, and consequences if something goes wrong.
Hands-On Public Safety Training, Built for Real Police Work
After retiring from law enforcement John leaned into drone work full time through his company, JRM Drone Services.
John offers small-group, hands-on training built around how public safety teams actually operate on real calls.
He told us that his training work exists for a simple reason: many agencies buy drones . . . and then get stuck.
They’ve got the aircraft. Maybe a couple pilots have passed the Part 107. But they don’t yet have a reliable workflow, or confidence, or a clear understanding of what good operations look like when a call is unfolding fast.
John trains department by department, keeping sessions small, hands-on, and practical. His emphasis is less on lecturing, and more on repeated practice—really getting in the time on the sticks.
He focuses on building operational competence: how to fly in the kinds of environments public safety teams actually face, how to manage risk, and how to make decisions that protect people and property.
His goal isn’t just to help departments fly. It’s to help them build a program that’s consistent, safe, and defensible when things go sideways and leadership needs answers.
Why Police Departments Are Investing in Drones
Two big drivers of drone adoption in public safety are economics and access.
Not every department has aviation support, and even when helicopters are available, they’re expensive and limited. Drones make it possible for agencies—especially smaller ones—to get aerial intelligence faster and gather critical information without putting someone in harm’s way.
This is why, in many cases, drones don’t replace anything. They just make new responses possible.
How Law Enforcement Uses Drones
If you’ve never worked in public safety, it’s easy to assume police drones are mostly used to shoot aerial footage.
That’s not what John sees.
He describes drones as a multi-tool—one that supports search, investigation, and response in a way that’s faster and often safer than traditional approaches.
Here’s how John says drones are most commonly being used in police work today:
- Search and rescue / missing persons. Drones help teams cover ground faster and use thermal imaging to locate people in low-light or obscured conditions, especially in wooded areas and hard-to-search terrain.
- Accident scene documentation and investigations. Capturing overhead imagery to support crash reconstruction and preserve a clear, defensible visual record of the scene.
- Fire response support. Using thermal cameras to identify hotspots through smoke and provide better situational awareness during active fire scenes.
- Drone as First Responder (DFR) deployments. Launching quickly to assess a situation before officers move in—tracking suspects, confirming locations, and providing real-time awareness during unfolding calls.
John’s Work as a UAV Coach Flight Instructor
John’s work goes beyond public safety. He’s also an instructor for UAV Coach’s hands-on flight training, a role he’s had since 2023.
He first discovered UAV Coach while working patrol and detective cases, watching the company’s videos and reading its weekly newsletter. And in one of the newsletters, he spotted an instructor opening in his area.
John says that a big part of the flight training work he does is meeting people where they are.
He’s been surprised by who shows up. It’s been a big range of backgrounds, from social media marketers (including students working for Temple University), people from landscaping companies, and engineers who want to learn mapping and other practical skills.
That mix fits how John teaches. He comes from a family of educators, and he focuses on helping students build confidence they can actually use once they leave a session.
He also brought Drone Pilot Ground School, UAV Coach’s Part 107 test prep course, to his police department.
When they needed to add new pilots, he recommended the course. Three officers signed up, studied with Drone Pilot Ground School, and passed the Part 107 test on their first try.