Nevada Army Guard helicopter set to assist in Texas
CARSON CITY — A Nevada Army Guard CH-47 Chinook helicopter crew will fly to Texas Wednesday to assist emergency responders in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. The Chinook helicopter crew is set to assist the Texas National Guard with search and rescue missions in the Houston, Texas, vicinity.
The Chinook model helicopter can carry 36 people and carry more than 25 tons. The crew of 8 soldiers was to leave the Nevada Army Aviation Facility adjacent the Stead Airport between 8-9 a.m., Wednesday morning.
The Chinook will likely fly into Dallas, Texas to receive its final mission instructions from the Texas incident site commander. The Chinook will fly to Texas at about 150 mph. The crew will include several pilots and crew chiefs as well as a fueler.
The departure of the Chinook fulfills the first request the Nevada Army Guard has received in conjunction with Hurricane Harvey.
In 2005, the Nevada Guard sent some of the first out-of-state Army and Air units to the New Orleans area after Hurricane Katrina struck Louisiana and Mississippi.
The Nevada Air Guard's medical team operated out of the Louis Armstrong Airport and a joint team from the Nevada Army Guard's 72nd Military Police Company and 152nd Security Forces Squadron performed a sweep through the Morial Convention Center to restore order in the facility.