A UH-72B Lakota helicopter that belongs to the Nevada Army Guard flies over Red Rock Canyon on Tuesday, May 16, 2023. (Chitose Suzuki/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
(Tribune News Service) — The Nevada National Guard pilots took to the skies Tuesday to showcase two new helicopters that will bolster capabilities for rescues, wildfire containment and disaster response missions.
Nevada was one of nine states to receive Lakota UH-72B helicopters, each costing $8 million, from the U.S. Department of Defense.
In a demonstration flight for local media, the pilots flew the helicopters above the mountainous terrain in the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area to test out their capabilities. Such terrain is what pilots of the new Lakota helicopters are likely to face on their missions.
The helicopters will be able to perform search-and-rescue missions in nearly any local environment using a hoist and medical responders, according to a news release. The helicopters also are able to suspend cargo that weighs not more than 8,000 pounds through a long line hanging from the bottom of the helicopter. In a different configuration, it is able to do air surveillance with an infrared camera that soon will be used at the border of the U.S and Mexico. In another configuration, the helicopter can carry up to nine people due to the added cabin space.
Of the nearly 3,400 Nevada National Guard soldiers, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Joel Oscarson is one of the few that was born and raised in Las Vegas. Oscarson, owner of the Aspen Insulation business, serves part-time as a helicopter pilot for the National Guard.
“The big buy-in for me is that I get to serve my own community while also working in my own community,” Oscarson said, who joined the National Guard roughly 15 years ago.
Pilots in the National Guard are required to serve their regular hours plus additional hours of flight time. Helicopter pilots are required to have nearly 100 hours of flight time in a year, which is less than airplane pilots because plane have the longer flight times, Oscarson said.
The new Lakota helicopters, which are able to travel over 400 miles before needing to refuel are more powerful than their UH-72A Lakota counterparts, which makes accenting easier on the aircraft when it is on a search mission. The added stability from a five-blade main rotor that keeps the cockpit from shaking too much, according to Sgt. Michael Knight, a crew chief.
U.S. Army National Guard Sgt. Michael Knight, left, and Sgt. 1st Class Erick Studenicka, ride a UH-72B Lakota helicopter, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, around the Red Rock Canyon area, as another UH-72B Lakota helicopter following it, right. (Chitose Suzuki/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
The Las Vegas Strip is seen from a UH-72B Lakota helicopter, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, in Las Vegas. (Chitose Suzuki/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
A UH-72B Lakota helicopter that belongs to the Nevada Army Guard flies over the Las Vegas Strip, Tuesday, May 16, 2023. (Chitose Suzuki/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
UH-72B Lakota helicopter pilots U.S. Army National Guard Chief Warrant Officer 4 Kevin Keeler, left, and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Tad Casebolt prepare to fly at North Las Vegas Airport, Tuesday, May 16, 2023, in North Las Vegas. (Chitose Suzuki/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
The two new helicopters are going to be staying in Las Vegas as it’s considered one of the nine states that has a mountainous environment. The military keeps wartime helicopters such as the Black Hawk and the Chinooks in Northern Nevada, while Southern Nevada has light utility helicopters for domestic mission, Oscarson said.
The wartime helicopters are used to help fight fires because of their greater capacity, but burn too much fuel and are too large for urban environments.
“Historically we’ve had Katrina, earthquakes, Haiti and we’ve had all these different non-war time disasters where this is really designed to help in these situations,” Oscarson said.
The North Las Vegas-based B/C Company, 3rd Battalion, 140th Aviation Regiment will maintain and operate the new helicopters.
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