Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Steven Petibone | A UH-60 conducting water bucket training at Round Lake in 2014. ( New York Army...... read more read more
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ROUND LAKE, N.Y. - New York Army National Guard UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter crews will conduct water bucket training at the Round Lake Municipal Airport on Tuesday, May 5 in order to prepare to assist in fighting wild fires if directed by state officials.
Members of the press are invited to observe the training.
Who: Pilots and crews of the New York Army National Guard Army Aviation Support Facility in Latham.
What: Training of Army National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crews on waterbucket operations in preparation for wild fire season.
Where: Round Lake Airport, Airfield Road off Route 67, Round Lake, NY 12118.
When: Tuesday, May 5, 10 a.m. (This date may be changed due to bad weather)
Coverage opportunities News media may visit the Round Lake Airport where they can interview an Army aviator who can discuss the training. The training can best be viewed from access points along Route 9 in Round Lake. Sgt. Major Corine Lombardo at 528-4770 is the on the ground contact.
Background New York Army National Guard helicopter pilots and aircrew use the buckets, known by the trademarked name of Bambi Buckets, to scoop up water from lakes and rivers and then dump the water on forest or wildfires.
The collapsible buckets, which are hung underneath the helicopters, can dump 560 gallons of water on a fire each time they are used.
Each spring Army National Guard helicopter crew members and maintenance personnel retrain on how to attach the buckets to Black Hawk helicopters and then practice picking up water and dumping it.
The training is necessary because a bucket full of water weights two tons and helicopter pilots need to practice flying with that additional weight hanging under their aircraft in order to fly safely in an emergency.
The New York Army National Guard employs helicopter firefighting equipment when local agencies request support through the New York State Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services.
The last time New York Army National Guard helicopters had to be employed in a firefighting role was in April 2008 when a series wildfire developed at Minnewaska State Park in Ulster County.
| Date Taken: | 05.04.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 05.04.2015 17:32 |
| Story ID: | 162202 |
| Location: | ROUND LAKE, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 256 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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