Two flight teams from the Wisconsin Army National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 147th Aviation Regiment, 64th Troop Command traveled from Madison to Sacramento, California to help with the recent wildfire outbreak.
According a release, the teams traveled in early September more than 1,700 miles and it took almost four days. Since the trek, the team hasn’t stopped flying as they’ve continued helping California Army National Guard aviators along with other firefighters. “It’s a very rewarding experience when people ask for help and we can go and provide that assistance,” said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Mike Tomblin, 147th pilot in command. “When we got asked, it’s just part of our nature to want to go do it. This helps grow the unit. The number of experiences we get from here certainly helps with our unit back home.”
The team were sent out to drop thousands of gallons of water on the Creek Fire in Fresno County a week after arriving. They then moved to a section of the SQF Complex Fire in Tulare County.