TROY, NY (04/09/2012)(readMedia)-- Two New York Army National Guard UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters will conduct water bucket training in the Hudson River south of the Menands Bridge near the Troy water treatment plant on Tuesday April 10.
The helicopters, based at Army Aviation Support Facility #3 in Latham will practice scooping water out of the river in Bambi Buckets slung under the helicopters and then dumping the water back into the river. The training is part of an annual requirement to prepare to fight forest fires in support of other state agencies.
The Army National Guard helicopters will use the helipad at the Glenmore Road Armory in Troy, just above the river, for a staging area during the training.
The aircraft will be training from approximately 10:30 to 12 a.m.
Bambi Buckets are a trademarked name for a collapsible water buckets made by SEI Industries, a Canadian company. They can dump 660 of gallons of water on a fire at a time.