Hero cops kept a malfunctioning helicopter in the air so they could move it away from a built-up area in order to make an emergency landing in Florida.

The emergency landing took place at night near an elementary school outside the city of Brooksville in Hernando County in the US state of Florida at around 10pm on 29th July.

The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office’s aviation unit had to stop a search for a wanted person due to technical “issues” with the Bell OH-58 Kiowa helicopter.

After encountering problems, the crew of Air 1, tactical flight officer BJ Hart and deputy pilot Roy McLaughlin, decided not to land immediately as they were in a built-up area and instead looked for an ideal place to land without risking the lives of anyone on the ground.

At one point, the pilot said he could not see due to his goggles being fogged up.

In the end, the Bell OH-58 Kiowa helicopter landed in a field close to the Brooksville Elementary School.

The crew members were treated by paramedics and later released at the scene.

Meanwhile, the authorities are still investigating what happened to the helicopter for the crew to make an emergency landing.

The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement: “Hernando County Sheriff’s deputies, with assistance from the Aviation and K-9 Units, were in the Brooksville area attempting to locate a wanted person.

“During this time, the HCSO Aviation Unit ‘Air-1’, flown by Deputy Pilot Roy McLaughlin and Tactical Flight Officer B.J. Hart, advised the dispatcher they were having issues and would be attempting to land.

“Deputy Pilot McLaughlin immediately left the heavily populated area of Brooksville, flying toward an area where he could safely land the aircraft without endangering citizens.

“At approximately 10.15 pm, Deputy Pilot McLaughlin landed the aircraft in a field near Brooksville Elementary School.

“Hernando County Fire and Emergency Services responded to the scene to check on McLaughlin and Hart. Both men were treated on scene and released.”

The police added: “The aircraft, an OH-58, remained on scene overnight. Early this morning the Aviation Mechanic and Chief Pilot responded back to the scene to determine the cause of the malfunction.”

It was later seen being trailered back to the HCSO Hangar after engineers were apparently unable to repair it on the ground.