The Washington State Patrol was able to quickly recover a stolen motorcycle last week, even though the vehicle had been hidden inside a garage at the suspect's Federal Way residence.

Signals from a LoJack system installed on the bike were received in a WSP aircraft, and the pilot was able to pinpoint the specific residence where the stolen bike had been stashed.

The recovery took just 33 minutes from the time the vehicle was listed as stolen.

"If you steal things from people, we're coming after you," said Lt. Tristan Atkins, commander of WSP's Aviation Division. "This technology is pretty amazing."

"In essence, you can ride but you can't hide," Atkins said.

The vehicle, a 2007 Suzuki GSX-R750, was stolen Wednesday afternoon from the victim's workplace.

When the Federal Way Police Department listed the vehicle as stolen a text message was sent to WSP Trooper/Pilot Troy Davis saying the LoJack system on the bike had been activated.

From his Cessna aircraft, Davis tracked the signal to a residence in the 30200 block of Military Road.

WSP ground troopers and officers from Federal Way and another local PD converged on the residence.

They confirmed that the LoJack signals were indeed coming from inside. They made contact with the occupants, and received permission to search the garage. They ended up arresting three people and recovering other stolen items along with the motorcycle.

All five of WSP's Cessna fixed-wing aircraft are equipped with LoJack stolen vehicle trackers.

Typically, the aircraft can track stolen vehicles from a greater distance than patrol cars equipped with LoJack units.

In addition, the aircraft can track stolen vehicles that have been moved to areas in Western Washington that are not covered by LoJack equipped patrol cars.

In one four-year period, WSP's Aviation Section tracked 65 stolen vehicles-some that led to "chop shops"- resulting in the recovery of 87 stolen vehicles.

The total value of the vehicles recovered is estimated at more than $350,000.