Photo By Wayne Hall | The Pennsylvania Army National Guard provides a unique training experience for more...... read more read more
Subscribe
FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – The Pennsylvania Army National Guard conducted a helicopter orientation training event for emergency responders Sept. 11 at the Army Aviation Support Facility No. 1 and Muir Army Heliport here.
More than 120 firefighters and rescue personnel from several fire companies in the communities surrounding the installation and its most common helicopter flight routes attended this unique training experience.
Muir Army Heliport is billed as the second-busiest heliport in the U.S. Army and home to the Eastern Army National Guard Aviation Training Site and a portion of the 28th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade’s aircraft. As such, Pennsylvania Army National Guard helicopters are a common sight in the skies throughout central Pennsylvania, so it’s important that first responders are prepared should they ever need to respond to a helicopter emergency in their area.
“The first goal would be to orient them to our helicopters and what their missions are, their capabilities; and what they need to be aware of if they would respond to the scene of an accident,” said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Danielle J. Watkins, aviation safety officer for the AASF No. 1 and the 28th ECAB.
This training event is also an opportunity to build a good working relationship between the PAARNG and community partners and provide an opportunity for attendees to get up-close and personal with the three primary helicopters in the PAARNG inventory – CH-47 Chinook, UH-60 Black Hawk and UH-72 Lakota.
It’s likely that civilian fire and rescue personnel would be the first to respond should a PPARNG helicopter be involved in an emergency landing or mishap anywhere outside the installation, so this event helps them understand these aircraft better should that ever occur.
“They'll basically be able to do a walk around and climb in the aircraft,” Watkins said. “Have that actual hands-on training experience to know the things that are important on the aircraft, such as where the fuel lines are, the fuel cells, where they could expect to find air crew members or passengers, and maybe how many [people may be] on board.”
One of the great benefits the National Guard offers the nation is that its members quite often live and work in the communities where they serve, and in some cases that is even true for first responders.
“I think [this training] is a great idea,” said John Wagner, a former PAARNG Soldier who is currently with the Reade Volunteer Fire Co. in Reade Township. “Not a lot of folks know what to do with these things, the materials that the aircraft are made of … So, to be able to know what to do and know the aircraft makes a world of difference if something does happen in my area.”
The training helped first responders gain a greater understanding of the different challenges they could face if they had to respond to an aircraft incident, and some considerations they may not have considered.
“We all think aviation fuel and that's what we have to worry about,” Sarah Monger of the Tremont Volunteer Fire Co., in Schuylkill County, said of her first up-close experience with Army helicopters. “But no. Magnesium is everywhere [on these aircraft].”
| Date Taken: | 09.11.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.12.2025 14:32 |
| Story ID: | 548003 |
| Location: | FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 17 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Pa. National Guard hosts helicopter orientation for emergency responders, by Wayne Hall, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
