We witnessed extraordinary piloting skills on the big screen in Top Gun, Sully and Independence Day. You can add two Stafford County Sheriff’s Office drone pilots to that list after their life-saving rescue mission early this morning.

On February 17th at 1:17 a.m. deputies responded to the Civil War Park on Mount Hope Church Road for a missing 36-year-old male hiker. The hiker had become separated from a fellow hiker and was last seen at midnight. As temperatures plummeted below freezing, deputies learned the missing hiker was not properly dressed for the weather.

Unfortunately, the missing hiker’s phone battery had died. A Stafford County Sheriff’s Office bloodhound responded and attempted a track. The drone team was activated and Sergeant S.H. Curtis and Deputy M.A. Holub conducted a methodical search of the park.

Finally, at 5:53 a.m., as the drone pilots covered the last section of the park, they observed the missing hiker in the woods. The drone proceeded to lead the rescue team to the lost hiker and bring him to safety.

Thank you to all the deputies that participated in this rescue mission and especially to our talented drone pilots. Their work undoubtedly saved a life this morning.