An Oregon Army National Guard CH-47 Chinook helicopter with 1st Battalion, 168th Aviation Regiment dups a 2,000 gallon capacity Bambi Bucket amid smoke over the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness Area in order to support firefighting efforts on the Whitewater Fire on August 5, 2017. The Oregon National Guard was called upon following Gov. Kate Brown's emergency order on August 2, two Chinook helicopters are currently assigned to the fire. (Photo by Capt. Leslie Reed, Joint Force Headquarters Public Affairs).

U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers and first responders-rescuers with the South Carolina Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team (SC-HART) conduct aerial-rescue training in mountainous terrain, Table Rock area, South Carolina, Aug. 22-26, 2022. The event included a variety of training scenarios emphasizing survivor extractions from mountain slopes and tops, as well as aquatic rescues from rivers and lakes. In addition, air crews and rescuers performed refresher and proficiency training for the ongoing hurricane season. SC-HART is a collaborative effort between the South Carolina Army National Guard and State Urban Search and Rescue Task Force (SC-TF1) under the direction of the Office of the State Fire Marshal, South Carolina Emergency Management Division. The South Carolina Army National Guard contributes to the program with instructors, crews, support personnel, and UH-60 Black Hawk and LUH-72 Lakota helicopters; all military personnel and aircrafts are assigned to 59th Aviation Troop Command, South Carolina Army National Guard. (U.S. Army National Guard photo Sgt. 1st Class Roby Di Giovine, South Carolina National Guard)

pictionid72696906 - catalog07.01.b-00995 - titleboeing-vertol ch-47a chinook reads detachment 1136th aviation company texasfort indian town gap pa.bam bam-nickname cartoonguy k. miller flight engineer22784.-- - filename07.01.b-00995.jpg -Image scanned from a 35mm Slide--Please tag this photo so that the data can be stored with our Digital Asset Management System. -Repository: San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive

Actually the OH-58D Kiowa carried a LAU-68 rocket launcher w/ seven 2.75" Hydra 70 rockets... back in the day.

Figure since War on Terror Army Aviation Vet Amber Smith is giving a talk at the Museum of Flight on 17 September 2016 at 2 PM ( goo.gl/dixVCp ) about her new memoir "Danger Close", ought to as well have a Flashback Friday from the 2012 American Heroes Airshow at Seattle's The Museum of Flight for the ages... enjoy. Especially as the memoir mentions the use of these 2.75" rockets!

Now for the other photos from the 2012 American Heroes Helicopter Airshow, go here: www.flickr.com/photos/avgeekjoe/albums/72157630597965392

PHOTO CREDIT: Joe A. Kunzler Photo, AvgeekJoe Productions, growlernoise-AT-gmail-DOT-com

An Army paratrooper assigned to the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, U.S. Army Alaska, descends over Malemute Drop Zone during airborne jump training at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Nov. 1, 2018. The Soldiers of 4/25 belong to the only American airborne brigade in the Pacific and are trained to execute airborne maneuvers in extreme cold weather and high altitude environments in support of combat, partnership and disaster relief operations. Army aviators from B Company, 1st Battalion, 52nd Aviation Regiment out of Fort Wainwright, operated CH-47 Chinook helicopters to support the airborne training. (U.S. Air Force photo by Alejandro Peña)

Eurocopter UH-72A Lakota of the 2916th Aviation Battalion, National Training Center, Fort Irwin, California, at the 2016 MCAS Miramar Air Show held September 23-25, 2016.

U.S. Soldiers from the S.C. Army National Guard sling load a UH-60 Black Hawk from Detachment 2, Company F, 1-171st General Support Aviation Battalion, S.C. Army National Guard, to McEntire Joint National Guard Base, Eastover, S.C. Dec. 7, 2014. The Black Hawk made an emergency landing in an open field Dec. 3, 2014 due to a main rotor blade malfunction in Columbia, S.C. The Black Hawk was released by the Accident Review Board for recovery and was being transported via sling-load under a S.C. Army National Guard CH-47 Chinook helicopter from Detachment 1, B-Company, 2-238th General Support Aviation Battalion, S.C. Army National Guard Army Aviation Support Facility in Greenville, S.C. The cause of the main rotor malfunction remains under investigation. (Photo by Sgt. Brian Calhoun/Released)

U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer 5 Guy Clayton Harbin, brigade senior logistics technician, 59th Aviation Troop Command (ATC), South Carolina National Guard, retires after over 40 years of service in the South Carolina National Guard, Army Aviation Support Facility, McEntire Joint National Guard Base, Eastover, South Carolina, April 2, 2023. Leaders of the Army Aviation community of the South Carolina National Guard joined Mr. Harbin’s family, friends, guests, and colleagues in attendance. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Roby Di Giovine, South Carolina National Guard)

U.S. Army National Guard helicopters assigned to the 59th Aviation Troop Command (ATC), South Carolina National Guard (SCNG), participate in a static-display event for warbirds and legacy aircraft, Greenville Downtown Airport, South Carolina, Oct. 27-28, 2022. 59th ATC’s participation is part of a broader SCNG community-outreach program meant to further solidify partnerships between National Guard units and local communities. Additionally, like most community-outreach events, this participation aimed to support SCNG recruiting by allowing the public to see heavy equipment up close. For the occasion, 59th ATC brought to the event two helicopters, a CH-47F Chinook and an LUH-72A Lakota, respectively cargo and utility-observation aircraft. The event also included two North American T-6 Texan I and a Curtiss P-40 Warhawk World War II airplanes on display, as well as warbird rides and militaria.

(U.S. Army National Guard photo Sgt. 1st Class Roby Di Giovine, South Carolina National Guard)

Pilots from A company complete their run-up checks before a summer day mission at the Pinon Canyon Manuever Site.

Guayaquil, Ecuador

Although I wish I was a little ahead of the Chinook instead of alongside it, please enjoy this photograph of the oldest flying Chinook helicopter in the world leaving the Museum of Flight after opening up for tours - photos as I develop up at flic.kr/s/aHskNrQetQ .

PHOTO CREDIT: Joe A. Kunzler Photo, AvgeekJoe Productions, growlernoise-AT-gmail-DOT-com

Unit: A/2-135 GSAB, Colorado Army National Guard

88-26042 was a UH-60A, converted to a UH-60L in 2010/2011. The aircraft now has the lastest "mods" as it gets ready to head overseas. On the intakes are External Inlet Barrier Filters (EIBFs).

The old "paint strip" on the stabilator is from the blaze orange firefighting stripes applied during the Highmark fire waterbucket operations.

Sorry about the lack of good focus, I just was totally shocked to see an Apache gunship.

US Army refuelling soldiers gas up an AH-64 Apache attack helicopter at Ansbach Airfield in Germany. The Apaches, part of the US Army’s 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, are stationed in Germany, as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve.

U.S. Army Spc. Stephen Erickson, aviation maintenance technician attached to 2nd Battalion, 149th Aviation Regiment, General Support Aviation Battalion, 36th Combat Aviation Brigade, "Task Force Mustang," conducts maintenance on a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter’s flare dispenser system at Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, Dec. 10, 2022. (2nd Lt. Tiffany Paruolo, 3-142nd AHB Public Affairs Representative)

Just happened to get lucky, very lucky. Hope folks enjoy!

11 November 2016 was a really awesome day. Sure was happy to photograph the oldest flying Chinook helicopter in the world fly into the Museum of Flight and test out a Fisheye lens - photos as I develop up at flic.kr/s/aHskNrQetQ .

PHOTO CREDIT: Joe A. Kunzler Photo, AvgeekJoe Productions, growlernoise-AT-gmail-DOT-com

University of Alaska Army ROTC cadets offload from an Alaska Army National Guard UH-60L Black Hawk helicopter, assigned to the 1-207th Aviation Regiment, during an air assault training event at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Dec. 2, 2022. Following the tactical insertion, the Seawolf Detachment cadets maneuvered across snow-covered terrain, assaulted opposition forces, secured their objective, and concluded with an air exfiltration. The AKARNG’s General Support Aviation Battalion routinely trains with all branches of the military as well as civilian agencies to hone its operational interoperability and maintain readiness for a wide range of state and federal missions. (U.S. Air Force photo by Alejandro Peña)

U.S. Army Master Sgt. Marc A. Steele, 351st Aviation Support Battalion, 59th Aviation Troop Command (ATC), South Carolina National Guard (SCNG), is promoted to the rank of sergeant major, during a ceremony at the South Carolina National Guard Army Aviation Support Facility (loc. 1), McEntire Joint National Guard Base, South Carolina, Jan. 23, 2022. Steele’s friends and family members, as well as leaders of the SCNG Army Aviation community and Soldiers of 59th ATC, attended the ceremony. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Roby Di Giovine, South Carolina National Guard)

A UH-60 Blackhawk crew chief waits for his passengers while enjoying the heat, the heat of the exhaust, and the fact the mission is just not ending soon enough.

A flight of two U.S. Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopters and two U.S. Army UH-60L Black Hawk medium-lift utility helicopters, respectively assigned to the 1-151st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion and 1-111th General Aviation Support Battalion, 59th Aviation troop Command, South Carolina National Guard, perform low-altitude training in vicinity of Sumter, South Carolina, Dec. 3, 2021. The training was conducted inside a new training area created specifically to provide South Carolina Army National Guard, rated and non-rated crew members with a controlled environment in which safely develop low-altitude piloting, navigation, and combat skills, as well as crew-resource management techniques. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Roby Di Giovine, South Carolina National Guard)

Airman 1st Class Brenden Bonds, a tactical air control party apprentice assigned to the 3rd Air Support Operations Squadron, pauses for a photograph during a break in small unit training at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Nov. 18, 2020. Conducted under physical and mental stress, the small unit training reinforced fundamental combat skills and fostered team cohesion. (U.S. Air Force photo by Alejandro Peña)

U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers and South Carolina Task Force 1 (SC-TF1) Urban Search & Rescue firefighters with the South Carolina Helicopter Aquatic Team (SC-HART) program participate in a quarterly training event at the South Carolina Fire Academy (SCFA), Dec. 11-12, 2019 in Columbia, South Carolina. The event focused on currency training, skills development/refresh drills, and aircrew-rescue team integration on LUH-72 Lakota and UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters. Aircrews and rescue teams practiced survivor extraction from open spaces, rooftops (flat and high angle), windows, and rubble pile/confined areas, both in daylight and night conditions. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Roby Di Giovine, South Carolina National Guard)

OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea (Mar. 30, 2016) - A team of Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 1st Air Defense Artillery Regiment, signal a "thumbs up" to the 2-2 Assault Helicopter Battalion flight crew that it is clear to take off with a Missile Round Trainer connected via sling load method during a sling load training event held at Camp Carroll. (Photo by U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Kelly Carlton, 35th ADA Brigade Public Affairs)

** Interested in following U.S. Pacific Command? Engage and connect with us at www.facebook.com/pacific.command and twitter.com/PacificCommand and www.pacom.mil/

U.S. Army Sgt. Anthony Orduno, a UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter crew chief with Bravo Company, 1st Assault Helicopter Battalion, 140th Aviation Regiment, California Army National Guard, watches as the helicopter's bucket lowers toward the Cresta reservoir and dam in Feather River Canyon, Nov. 15, 2018, while helping contain the Camp Fire in Butte County, California. The California National Guard provided four helicopters to help contain the fire, including two of it's new M-model UH-60 Black Hawks. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Airman Crystal Housman)

U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers with Det. 1 Company B, 238th General Support Aviation Battalion, South Carolina National Guard, support an airborne-training operation with a CH-47F Chinook helicopter in Scotland County, North Carolina, Oct. 23, 2020. The parachute-drop mission serves as a training exercise for South Carolina National Guard aviation members, while providing assistance to other U.S. Army units, both active duty and reserve components. (U.S. Army National Guard photo Sgt. 1st Class Roby Di Giovine, South Carolina National Guard)

U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers from the New Jersey National Guard's D Company, 1-150th Assault Helicopter Battalion, work on a UH-72 Lakota helicopter at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., June 14, 2017. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Matt Hecht)

An AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter gunship from the 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, prepares for a night mission on May 31. The 1-1 ARB Gunfighter air and ground crews work around the clock sustaining air operations and are part of the Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, from Fort Riley, Kan., flying in support of Task Force Iron, 1st Armored Division, in northern Iraq. (Photo by U.S. Army Maj. Enrique T. Vasquez)

A U.S. Army CH-47 Chinook from the 40th CAB flies a Spanish flag while particpating in a joint flight with a Eurocopter Cougar from the Spanish Army Airmobile Force with Task Force Toro while deployed to the Middle East in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. | U.S. Army National Guard Photo by 2Lt. Kyle Gallagher

Command Sgt. Maj. Janet Bretado from the 640th Aviation Support Battalion enjoys the sunset follwong a patching ceremony while deployed to the Middle East with the 40th CAB in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. | U.S. Army National Guard Photo by 2Lt. Kyle Gallagher

M-60 Door Gun. UH-1 Huey Slick. I was sitting on the floor, right side front, with my feet dangling outside to dry.

Figured some would enjoy an image like this... all nice and close with the rotor blade. Enjoy!

PHOTO CREDIT: Joe A. Kunzler Photo, AvgeekJoe Productions, growlernoise-AT-gmail-DOT-com

U.S. Army National Guard Soldiers with the 2-151st Security and Support Aviation Battalion, South Carolina National Guard, received the new UH-72 Bravo Lakota helicopter at Army Aviation Support Facility Two, Feb. 7, 2023, Greenville, South Carolina. Flown from Huntsville, Alabama the newest edition of rotary wing aircraft for the South Carolina National Guard Army Aviation will be replacing the UH-72 Alpha models, as the South Carolina National Guard was one of nine states fielded two of the new UH-72 Bravo models. This upgraded aircraft equipped with enhanced engines, transmission, and avionics will be an important asset, specifically for search and rescue missions with the South Carolina Aquatic Rescue Team (SC-HART), providing a faster response time to emergencies with increased space to rescue and transport more individuals. (U.S. Army National Guard photos by Sgt. Tim Andrews).

A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter drops water from a water bucket during wildfire suppression training in Round Lake, N.Y., April 17, 2019. The collapsible buckets, which are hung underneath the helicopters, can dump 560 gallons of water on a fire each time they are used. Each spring Army National Guard helicopter crew members and maintenance personnel retrain on how to attach the buckets to Black Hawk helicopters and then practice picking up water and dumping it. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Capt. Jean Marie Kratzer)

Apache aviators conduct in fly-in at the conclusion of the AH-64E, Version 6 Apache Helicopter Acceptance ceremony on May 6 at the Army Aviation Support Facility #1 in Morrisville, North Carolina.

The 1-130th Attack Battalion, 449th Combat Aviation Brigade, is the second Army National Guard unit to field the newest version of the Apache helicopter and one of six attack battalions in the U.S. Army Total Force. The AH-64E version 6 is the most advanced, modern configuration of the Apache with multiple enhancements to the aircraft’s performance, sensors and communications systems.(Courtesy video by Chaplin (Maj.) James Watters)

In the frame is a MH-47G from the US Army 4th Battalion, 160th SOAR/Special Operations Aviation Regiment. This helicopter - 04-03745 - is a rebuild from CH-47D 82-23773 which is a rebuild of CH-47C 68-16002. Yes, quite the history in this helicopter that visited Historic Flight Foundation/HFF for HFF's D-Day + 70 commemeration (my photoset).

According to the Boeing factsheet, "The MH-47G’s fully integrated digital Common Avionics architecture System (CAAS) permits global communications and navigation. CAAS is among the most advanced U.S. Army helicopter systems. CAAS includes integrated forward-looking infrared (FLIR) and multimode radar for nap-of-the-earth and low-level flight operations in conditions of extremely poor visibility and adverse weather. Today’s MH-47Gs contain a fully integrated digital cockpit management system, long-range fuel tanks and advanced cargo-handling capabilities that complement the aircraft’s mission performance and handling characteristics."

Special thanks to Historic Flight Foundation & 4th Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) for this unique opportunity to photograph SOAR's helicopters. Much appreciate - especially to you Todd & Vanessa when you could have turned me away!

Location: Pinion Canyon Manuever Site, CO

Unit: 2-135 GSAB Colorado Army National Guard

Wolfman 2-1 (84-23991) comes in for a landing after dropping it's load of John Deere Gators. A co. was forced to borrow a couple of G co. birds due to aircraft getting some modifications back at Buckley AFB.

U.S. Army Spc. Reinaldo Brown, aircraft electrician from Delta Company, 3rd Battalion, 142nd Aviation Regiment, Assault Helicopter Battalion, attached to 36th Combat Aviation Brigade, "Task Force Mustang," conducts electrical circuit tests and communications checks from the cockpit of a CH-47 Chinook helicopter at Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, Dec. 10, 2022. (U.S. Army Photo by 2nd Lt. Tiffany Paruolo, 3-142nd AHB Public Affairs Representative)

A UH-60 Blackhawk begins its run for a para-drop mission.

A/2-135 GSAB was supporting 5/19 SFG, both of the Colorado Army National Guard, in keeping their "drop" and Jump Master qualifications.

Please mare sure to visit the 2015 Paine Field Aviation Day photoset for more photos from arrival day & the actual event. Many thanks.

PHOTO CREDIT: Joe Kunzler Photo, AvgeekJoe Productions, growlernoise-AT-gmail-DOT-com

U.S. Army Col. James Fidler, 59th Aviation Troop Command (59th ATC) commander, South Carolina Army National Guard (SCARNG), completes his final flight aboard an AH-64D Apache helicopter at the South Carolina Army National Guard Army Aviation Support Facility (Location 1) at McEntire Joint National Guard Base, South Carolina, May 15, 2021. Family, friends, and colleagues attended the event and celebrated Fidler’s final flight as a military pilot. U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Van McCarty, the adjutant general for South Carolina, and U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Jeff Jones, deputy adjutant general for the South Carolina Military Department, joined the 59th ATC leadership to celebrate Fidler’s career and accomplishments. In early June, Fidler will relinquish command of the 59th ATC to U.S. Army Col. John McElveen and will continue serving the U.S. Army in an administrative and counseling capacity at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. (U.S. Army National Guard photo Sgt. 1st Class Roby Di Giovine, South Carolina National Guard)

Buttons for the flare, the radio, chaff and weapons. One busy stick, my Saitek X52 joystick is weak sauce in comparison.

More photos in the set - including of the Apache cockpit and in flight!