Archive image: Members of the Tennessee Army National Guard’s 1/230th Assault Helicopter Battalion trained with the Tennessee Department of Forestry to practice aerial firefighting techniques, at Milan’s Volunteer Training Site, Feb. 8.
Guardsmen used UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters equipped with Bambi Buckets to drop water on flaming targets, while Department of Forestry personnel directed them from the ground.
U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Timothy Cordeiro.
Story by Lt. Col. Darrin Haas, Tennessee National Guard
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – At the request of the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, the Tennessee National Guard provided four UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from Knoxville’s 1-230th Assault Helicopter Battalion to fight wildfires in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, beginning August 27,2024..
Around 2:20 p.m. EST, Tennessee National Guard helicopters departed from McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base with Bambi Buckets used to provide hundreds of gallons of water to fight wildfires.
Each aircraft made multiple trips throughout the afternoon, picking up water from nearby water sources and transporting it directly to the needed area. The firefighting aircrews delivered more than 40 Bambi Bucket loads of water, totaling nearly 8,000 gallons.
Three Tennessee National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters were flying missions, on August 28, delivering water to suppress the spread of the fire. The Tennessee National Guard is prepared to supporting the wildfires efforts as long as needed.
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The hundreds of gallons of water were used to fight wildfires in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, August 27.
Tennessee National Guard photo.
