--- title: "‘My training took over’ — This Air Force cop went on a 100 mph car chase to arrest suspect" description: "A security forces airman at Patrick Space Force Base Florida put the pedal to the metal to chase down a runaway vehicle late last year." date: "2022-03-07" modified: "2022-03-07" authors: - name: "David Roza" job_title: "YouTube Writer/Editor" link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/david-roza/" url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/news/air-force-security-forces-car-chase-florida/" categories: - "Air Force" - "Around the World" - "Military Branches" - "News" - "United States" --- # ‘My training took over’ — This Air Force cop went on a 100 mph car chase to arrest suspect ![air force security forces]() *U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Sarah Hardy, 45th Security Forces Squadron installation patrolman, stands outside a patrol vehicle at Patrick Space Force Base, Fla., Feb. 11, 2022. Hardy helped apprehend three suspects after a high-speed chase in December 2021. (U.S. Space Force photo by Airman 1st Class Samuel Becker)* The average workday for many security forces airmen, the Air Force equivalent of military police, often involves standing around at the base gate checking service members’ identification. But every once in a while, things rapidly become very real, sometimes at speeds above 100 miles per hour. At least, that’s what Senior Airman Sarah Hardy experienced on Dec. 16 when she was patrolling Patrick Space Force Base, Florida. A member of the 45th Security Forces Squadron, Hardy was checking out the on-base parking lot at Pineda Beach when she saw a suspicious-looking Chevrolet Silverado, according to an Air Force [press release]() published Thursday. Hardy asked the base’s security forces operations controller, Staff Sgt. Matthew Dusek, to run the license plate number through a crime database while she pulled up behind the car. While Dusek checked the numbers, the Chevrolet left the parking lot towards Pineda Causeway, a highway that connects mainland Florida to the island on which Patrick Space Force Base is located. Hardy followed in her own vehicle, and shortly afterward Dusek found that the Chevrolet had been reported stolen, along with a handgun and two magazines that were inside. “When I heard that the vehicle was stolen, I turned on my overhead lights,” said Hardy. “The vehicle immediately sped off in an erratic manner turning onto Pineda Causeway.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRxIcEd0N48 If it was at all surreal to go from routine patrolling to a high-speed car chase, Hardy appeared to give no sign. “Our speeds reached well over 100 mph,” Hardy recalled. “The vehicle was driving erratically and weaving in and out of traffic, but I was focused, and my training took over.” Dusek meanwhile may have been sweating bullets. “It was a stressful situation,” he said. “I immediately let her know that they were likely armed with a weapon.” Dusek requested help from the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, but until they arrived Hardy was on her own. Luckily the chase did not last much longer. At about 7:30 p.m., after roughly two miles of pursuit, the Chevrolet collided with a Toyota Tundra and then crashed into a concrete guardrail before stopping. It was not the end of the danger though: Hardy was told there was a gun inside the car, so she stepped outside and took cover with her own Sig Sauer 9mm drawn. Luckily, local sheriff’s deputy Dylan Weber arrived quickly. “Me and Weber had all occupants of the vehicle exit one by one,” Hardy said. “Then we instructed them to \[assume\] a kneeling position at the rear of the vehicle until backup arrived.” Two more deputies arrived a few minutes later, at which point they told each suspect to walk backwards towards them so that Hardy could handcuff each one. Then they swept the Chevrolet, where they detected a smell of marijuana and a handgun on the passenger side floorboard with two loaded magazines, Hardy said. Afterward, they checked on the Tundra driver, who was shaken but refused medical attention, the press release said. ![air force security forces]() *U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Sarah Hardy, 45th Security Forces Squadron installation patrolman, stands outside a 45th SFS building at Patrick Space Force Base, Fla., Feb. 11, 2022. (U.S. Space Force photo by Airman 1st Class Samuel Becker)* For Hardy to chase a speeding car down a highway at breakneck speeds without colliding into another vehicle speaks to the training she received in preparation for that moment. While the standard pipeline for Air Force defenders does not include vehicle pursuit training, two security forces airmen who spoke with Task & Purpose said that some bases require it when defenders arrive there. One recent [press release]() said that security forces airmen must also complete a minimum of 218 training hours annually. Airmen can choose which skills to train on for a small chunk of those hours, and past Air Force news stories show that pursuit vehicle training is sometimes an option. For example, one story from 2021 described how security forces airmen at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida learned from local police how to use a[ grappler net]() that launches from the front fender of a patrol car and wraps around the tires of a runaway vehicle. Another story from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska showed how local police taught defenders how to chase down other cars in the[ snowy, icy conditions]() of an Alaskan winter. No matter what level of training Hardy received prior to her December chase, it clearly was effective. “Hardy did an outstanding job,” said Tech Sgt. Casey Klask, flight sergeant for the 45th Security Forces Squadron. “I couldn't have handled it any better.” ## What’s new on Task & Purpose - [**The ‘Ghost of Kyiv’ is the first urban legend**]() **of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine** - **Man calls into public radio with tips on** [**how to make Molotov cocktails in Ukraine**]() - [**‘Russian warship, go f–k yourself’**]() **— Ukrainian troops make heroic last stand on Black Sea island** - **The Navy is moving ahead with court-martial of a** [**sailor accused of torching a $3 billion warship**]() - [**Military nuclear experts explain the actual danger of troops**]() **battling in the shadow of Chernobyl** - **Here’s what those mysterious** [**white ‘Z’ markings on Russian military equipment may mean**]() **Want to write for Task & Purpose?** [**Click here**]()**. Or check out the latest stories on** [**our homepage.**]() ## Author David Roza writes scripts about military news for the Task & Purpose YouTube channel, and he also writes articles about military pay, benefits, health care, child care, culture, and other personnel topics on a freelance basis. Roza previously covered the Air Force and Space Force for Task & Purpose from 2019 to 2023 and for Air & Space Forces Magazine from 2023 to 2025. In the course of that reporting, he has set off a ‘Hollywood explosion’ with Air Force bomb techs, turned the (unarmed) keys of a nuclear missile bunker, hovered over the Nevada desert on an Air Force rescue helicopter, and got the best sleep of his life on the floor of a C-17 over the central Pacific. Share tips and story ideas with David at [david.roza@teamrecurrent.io]()