PALM BAY, Fla. -- A Central Florida police department will be the first in the state to use an unmanned aircraft to help fight crime, according to a Local 6 News report.

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IMAGES: Drone Craft Photos

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Palm Bay police expect to use a small, unmanned aircraft to help track fleeing suspects, monitor traffic or help search for missing persons.

It could also be used to monitor suspected drug houses and hunt for hot spots in wildfires, among other uses.

"They are calling it the sky-cop program," Local 6's Kimberly Houk said. "(It's) a plane that flies around that gives police a new tool for fighting crime. It is a new way Palm Bay will be policing their city."

The eight-pound plane with kite-like wings should arrive next month, according to Local 6 News partner Florida Today.

The aircraft can transmit video and other data to a portable ground station monitored by police, according to the report.

"Basically, we will be able to go to crime scenes," Palm Bay police chief William Berger said. "We will be able to go to potential barricaded suspects and suspects who may be being searched for."

Instead of relying solely on the Brevard County Sheriff's Office helicopter, Berger envisions this 21st-century technology being used to find fleeing suspects or to search for missing people in the sprawling, 100-square-mile city.

The onboard cameras also will give Palm Bay Fire-Rescue a bird's-eye view of a spreading brush fire or help officers sort out major traffic congestion, he said.

"We can get this small model plane up in the air and be able to see what's happening, whether we're looking for a missing child or doing surveillance on a drug house," Berger said.

The aircraft will be paid for with $30,000 forfeited in drug arrests, the newspaper reported.

Watch Local 6 News for more information about this story.