What aircraft does RAVEN operate, and how many pilots/Tactical Flight Officers (TFOs) are employed?

We fly two OH-58A+ Kiowas (old Army) and two HH-1H Hueys (old Air Force) helicopters. The Hueys have been modified with Cobra engines, 212 transmissions, strake kit and FAST fins, and one has a Global tail rotor compensator. 

We operate with one full-time deputy pilot and three part-time civilian pilots. We have one full time TFO and six part-time TFOs who are deputies.

You perform SAR missions as well as surveillance and other aerial law enforcement tasks; what proportion of your tasks are SAR, and what specialized equipment do you have onboard to enable you to perform this role?

About a quarter of our missions are SAR related, and the biggest portion of our training time is SAR related.

With the Hueys, we have the Goodrich Internal Hoists with primary rescue equipment, primary Bauman Bag and Screamer Suits. We also have a medical pack and two vacuum immobilization splints. We can also utilize a rescue basket, rescue seat, and strop. We also have eight members of our local rescue team (Hasty Team) as rescue specialists to be lowered to the victims. Their highest medical rating is a nurse and some work with REMSA, our local ambulance service.

Our Hueys do not have a camera or IR system on them. If we are doing more of a search, we would use our Kiowa, which uses a Trakka TC-300. Or, we can have both aircraft out depending on the availability of crews.

About a quarter of our missions are SAR related, and the biggest portion of our training time is SAR related.

How important is it to invest in the latest upgrades to camera and searchlight technology – does it make a measurable difference to mission outcomes, in your opinion?

It is very important, but we also have budget constraints to consider – especially over the last couple of years. We upgraded a few years back from the FLIR 8500 to the Trakka TC-300, which made a big difference, one being that it is 15 years newer. The tracking and stability of the Trakka system is unmatched. The system records in both HD and IR at the same time, which is great for reviewing a mission. We would like to be able to put the Trakka TC-300 and Beam on the Hueys, but we have not had the money for the additional purchases as yet. 

Do you carry medical equipment to provide emergency treatment to patients? If so, what is it, and what training do your officers undergo to give them basic EMT skills?

We do have a basic first aid kit, up to and including tourniquets, on our Kiowa. In the Huey, we have an advanced aid bag in addition. Our deputies are trained in first aid, CPR, and some trauma. When we have the Hasty Team onboard, we will carry full paramedic bags depending on which members we have. 

Safety is key in any helicopter operation; what are the key aspects of a safety management system for you and RAVEN?

We keep track of training and work hours. We have a limit of eight flight hours/day and 42 per week, and during an intense fire season, we sometimes get close to this limit. We double check each other during normal work and on callouts, safety is our biggest concern. We have cancelled missions due to crew rest requirements before. It is hard with our mindset and focus on public safety, but we strive to be safe ourselves too. Some missions we have pushed to the next morning for safety.

From the perspective of avionics enhancing safety of operations, we are still using most of the steam gauges in our aircraft. We have 2 Aspen Evolutions in our fire Huey. We do carry iPad Minis in our aircraft for Foreflight and SARtopo tracking. We are looking to upgrade our avionics in the future. We do try and stay out of instrument flight rules (IFR) situations because in our mountainous area, it is usually freezing temperatures and our aircraft do not do well with ice build-up.

Police helicopter pilots have a massive workload and working closely with the TFO is vital. How do you ensure crew resource management is optimised across the team?

We do a class once a year about CRM and it is always an ongoing topic. We discuss situations that have happened in the news. The key message is always that no one is more important than the other, and we must always work as a team to get the mission done. We work to assist each other in the aircraft and if a situation is unsafe, we will stop and adjust as needed to render it safe.

The mountains are of course a challenge, and the Zephyr winds can develop on the east side of those mountains

The UH-1H helicopters can also perform aerial firefighting missions; how often are you called in to help extinguish wildfires, and what are the particular challenges of working in this field?

We have an Isolair tank mounted on RAVEN 3, which was our first Huey. We are an initial attack asset for our area, and many of the fire agencies in our area. The US Department of Agriculture or Department of the Interior do inspections with us annually on RAVEN 3 and go through the carding process for the pilots. We tend to get called out between five and 16 times per year, and part of the challenge we face is that when these callouts happen, they are not our only job. We have been on SWAT missions, and on the way back we get a call for a fire. We switch helicopters and go. Some fires are in our back yard so as we are taking off, we are already in the fire traffic area, and we must get our radio traffic out quick. The mountains are of course a challenge, and the Zephyr winds can develop on the east side of those mountains. Water sources are another challenge. There are few around that are close in our high desert area; I have used water out of horse troughs before on some fires.

Tremendous asset

In 1996, The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office was able to obtain four helicopters through the Department of Defense’s excess property program. The four aircraft that were delivered to the county were hulks that need quite a bit of restoration and overhaul before being transformed into useable assets. Building two flyable aircraft from the original four, the Regional Aviation Enforcement Unit, or RAVEN, was born. In addition to the two Kiowas that the unit operates, RAVEN is the proud operator of the very first of only 30 manufactured HH-1H Huey helicopters, originally built by Bell for the United States Air Force for Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) purposes. The two Kiowas and one Huey are all in outstanding mechanical condition thanks to the dedication of the full time and part time maintenance personnel assigned to the unit, and were acquired and refurbished using drug forfeiture money rather than taxpayer dollars.

Originally staffed with part-time pilots from the local Army Guard helicopter unit, RAVEN has become a self-sufficient aviation unit that has dedicated deputies assigned both full and part time to flying duties. Recently, the unit’s first TFO to pilot transition was completed, establishing a precedent for internal development of pilots without relying on outside, non-sworn personnel to fly the aircraft. This allows pilots and TFOs to stay proficient in both seats of the aircraft, lending a greater flexibility to staffing the unit and accomplishing the many missions that RAVEN performs in the heart of the Sierra mountains.

In the summer, Raven 3 Huey changes its primary role to that of firefighting. Fitted with a belly-mounted water tank able to carry 323 gallons of water, the Huey has become a tremendous asset for the Truckee Meadows and the surrounding Sierras, which are so often impacted by wild-land fires. Approval to fight fires on federal lands was the culmination of a nearly three-year long inspection process for the aircraft, maintenance practices and pilot check flights. Receiving final approval in 2011, RAVEN’s first fire season resulted in nearly 20 wildland fires fought, with nearly 80,000 gallons of water dropped on those fires. By all accounts, a spectacularly successful first season that resulted in millions of dollars of property saved from the ravages of wildland fires.