Cal Guard and CAL FIRE team up for annual wildland firefighting training

Photo By Pfc. William Espinosa | U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Jacob Sorensen, crew chief, Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 211th General Support Aviation Battalion, Utah National Guard, keeps watch on the surroundings of the HH-60M Black Hawk helicopter at the annual wildland firefighting training in Sacramento, Calif., April 22, 2023. A crew chief’s job entails primary aircraft maintenance, security of the aircraft, and securing of cargo and passengers among other things. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Pfc. William Espinosa)  

CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES

04.23.2023

Story by Sgt. Marla Ogden 

69th Public Affairs Detachment

SACRAMENTO, Calif.—Services members from the California Military Department participated in annual wildland firefighting training alongside counterparts from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection near Ione, California, April 23, 2023.
The training event, composed of collaborative aerial wildland firefighting tactics and procedures, is part of a long-standing partnership between the CMD and CAL FIRE to jointly, safely and effectively combat fires.
“We really rely on the Cal Guard to step up and fill in the gaps in a surge capacity for fighting fires in California,” said CAL FIRE Battalion Chief Tim Shiffer, training event cadre lead.
Shiffer explained that during fire season, CAL FIRE’s aerial firefighting equipment, like helicopters, becomes exhausted, causing the need to call on their trusted interagency partner—the Cal Guard.
During the training, Cal Guard and CAL FIRE crews collaboratively practiced hoisting Bambi Bucket systems to fill and dump water on designated drop sites.
“The training, once complete, allows the Cal National Guard to take firefighters, or military helicopter managers, on their aircrafts as crew members and integrate our military aircrafts into firefighting operations,” explained U.S. Army Lt. Col. Daniel Anderson, the State Aviation Deputy Officer.
Across the state, CAL FIRE uses the Cal Guard’s CH-47 Chinook, UH-60 Black Hawk and HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters to aid with dropping water over complex fires and air rescue MEDEVAC capabilities.
“It started in 1987, and we’ve been evolving this training ever since,” Shiffer said. “It works really well as we both understand our departments’ differences and similarities and are able to coordinate our two styles.”
In addition, the training also qualifies various other positions, such as liaisons and other crucial military personnel, to receive credentialing to operate within the fire system and support their civilian emergency service counterparts.
“Without this training, we wouldn’t know what the stakes, capabilities, or readiness are, or have those networks and relationships established,” Anderson said, who also serves in a dual capacity as a CAL FIRE pilot.
This year, National Guard service members from Utah, Wisconsin and Nevada also participated in the exercise to strengthen their interoperability ahead of California’s fire season.
“We always have the need for resources, so we took that relationship that we have with the other states and invited them to do the training ahead of time to get the qualifications,” Anderson explained.
In recent years, the respective states also took part in fighting California’s complex fires.
“We all do it for the sake of service and making sure that we as agencies and individuals are here, able and ready to support the needs of the citizens of California,” Anderson said.

• Date Taken: 04.23.2023
• Date Posted: 05.02.2023 12:19
• Story ID: 443815
• Location: CALIFORNIA, US