Soldiers with the Arizona Army National Guard’s 2-285th Assault Helicopter Battalion and 2-149th General Support Aviation Battalion Medical Evacuation Detachment 1 prepare for a two-day firefighting exercise at Picacho Stagefield Heliport in Picacho, Ariz., Feb. 20, 2021. Approximately 50 AZARNG crews trained with “Bambi” helicopter buckets during a joint aerial firefighting exercise partnered with the Casa Grande, Avra Valley and Queen Valley Fire Departments, as well as the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management. “We try to treat this like a regular fire assignment. We do this exercise every year to train and certify them. We do this exercise every year so that we can bring them in for fires on federal and state land,” said Charles Turner an Aviation Manager with the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management.
Picacho, AZ / Photo by Sgt. Laura Bauer
