Chief Commissioner Mike Bush has apologised for using a Victoria Police helicopter to attend a conference in Tasmania, instead of taking a commercial flight, at a time of financial pain for the force.

Bush flew to Hobart on Monday in a police helicopter – generally used for police operations such as tracking stolen vehicles or in missing person searches – to attend a police conference.

“It was the wrong decision. We should have looked harder for a commercial flight,” Bush said in a statement on Wednesday morning.

“While there were no impacts on our operational capacity, community safety or financial costs to Victoria Police as the flight fell within our contracted hours with the air wing provider, it creates a poor impression at a challenging time for our organisation.”

A Victoria Poli

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