IT WAS a job swap with a difference when a helicopter arrived to whisk a senior North Yorkshire police officer away to take up his namesake's role for the day.

The "chopper" landed near Malton Police Station yesterday to collect the commander of North Yorkshire Police's Eastern Area, Chief Superintendent David Short, so he could take up his new duties.

Chief Supt Short was exchanging roles with Lieutenant Colonel David Short, who is the commanding officer of 9 Regiment Army Air Corps, based at Dishforth.

The two officers have met at a number of functions recently and thought it would be a good opportunity to exchange expertise.

Both men are responsible for about 500 members of staff. "The coincidence of having two people of the same name, with the same rank equivalence, in the same geographic area must be pretty unusual," said Chief Supt Short, 47, who has 28 years of police service and controls police from Bedale to Scarborough and Great Ayton to the York boundary.

Lt Col David Short, 42, has 20 years military experience.

He said: "Although our jobs are very similar in terms of staff levels, I only control one base so it will be very interesting to see the problems and challenges posed by policing such a vast geographical area with the same number of people."

Updated: 11:58 Tuesday, December 16, 2003