DNRC trains personnel on helicopter tactics
<p>The town of Plains seen from the air during a DNRC helicopter training flight. Firefighters from around the region trained on how to coordinate ground efforts with the aircraft.</p><p>Can you spot your house?</p>
Department of Natural Resources and Conservation firefighters from around the region gathered outside Plains on Thursday to train with a helicopter crew from Kalispell. Firefighters were taught the proper methods for attaching equipment to the helicopter as well as radio protocol for calling in a water drop.
About 25 men and women met at a large clearing known as Big Prairie about 20 miles northwest of Plains on Thursday. They were met by a crew flying a Bell UH-1H known as a Huey that touched down in the field about 100 yards from the trainees.
After a safety briefing that included where it was safe to stand in relation to the aircraft and location of the many safety features, firefighters were briefed on new equipment. Recent innovations included a new type of bucket known as a blivet for carrying water as well as a new mechanism for attaching loads to the bottom of the helicopter.
After familiarizing themselves with the new device, firefighters divided themselves into two groups on opposite ends of the field. They were then tasked with filling cargo nets with various types of gear they might need in the event of a wildfire.
Chainsaws, shovels, pick-axes, hoses and other equipment were strategically placed in the nets to prevent them from falling out. The nets were then cinched up and tied for a practice lift. The helicopter took off and proceeded to hover over the loads.
One by one, trainees practiced attaching the loads to the line connected to the aircraft under the winds generated by the rotors. The aircraft then took off flying circles around the field, testing whether the loads would hold up and contents would stay in the nets.
After practicing with cargo nets, trainees were next instructed on the proper way to communicate with the helicopter pilot when a water drop was needed. Firefighters were accompanied by a crewmember out into the field where they called the pilot on the radio and instructed him on where and how they wanted the water dropped.
After the pilot filled the blivet with water from the nearby Clark Fork River, he flew around to the south for the approach. As the aircraft flew in low over the ground, trainees instructed the pilot whether they wanted a spot drop at low speed or a line drop at a higher speed.
When a spot drop was called for the helicopter would slow down dramatically and hover before dropping its load. For one such maneuver, a trainee called for a spot drop on a nearly 100-foot tall pine tree at the northern end of the field. Limbs came crashing down from the tree demonstrating the weight and power of the load in the blivet.
Another call from a trainee requested a drop across a line of trees requiring the pilot to fly at a higher rate of speed. The water cascaded over the tree line as the helicopter banked sharply and returned to the river for another run. After each trainee had a chance to practice radio protocol, the aircraft returned to the field for the next round of training.
The next phase tested firefighters on attaching the blivet to the cable under the helicopter. The device utilized new technology so the crew made sure every trainee had a chance to work with the equipment under the types of conditions they would likely encounter in the field. Trainees had to work under the added pressure generated by the winds from the rotors.
After completion of the training, firefighters, some of whom had never worked around a helicopter were offered the chance to go for a ride in one. Strapped safely in by harness, firefighters were taken for a 30-minute ride over Baldy Mountain, over Plains and then back to the heli-base at Big Prairie.
According to DNRC Air Operations Manager Jesse Best, this type of training is vital to an operation in the event of a wildfire.
“For some of these guys it’s their first exposure to our helicopter so we prefer they get that before an actual fire,” said Best. “Our purpose today is to reinforce what they have learned in class. Increasing their comfort level with the helicopter is extremely important in the event of a wildfire.”
The DNRC maintains a fleet of seven helicopters and three fixed-wing aircrafts. The helicopters are used as an initial attack on a fire as well as transporting personnel and equipment in a support role.