An iconic Vietnam War-era helicopter will soon bear the Merced County Sheriff's Department's green and gold.
Sheriff's officials announced their plans this month to add a 1973 UH-1H Bell Helicopter, commonly known as Huey, to the department's aviation unit. The Huey, valued at $922,704, is a donation from the California Emergency Management Agency (Cal-EMA) under the California Public Safety Procurement Program, according to Cmdr. Tom Cavallero.
The department expects to have the Huey at Castle Airport by the end of this year. Cavallero said the sheriff's department had been on a list to receive a helicopter for about three years, and officials recently learned the Huey was available. The board of supervisors approved acceptance of the donation last week.
While the department already has one helicopter, a 2005 Robinson R44 Raven II, Cavallero said the Huey will serve a different purpose. While the Raven is mainly used for search and surveillance, the Huey will be used to quickly carry people and equipment to remote areas not readily accessible by car or foot.
The Huey will be especially helpful in a disaster, such as a flood, Cavallero said. It will also help carry deputies and personnel to illicit marijuana grows and drug operations in remote, rural areas of the county, Cavallero said.
Right now, investigators often have to travel on foot through dense foliage and waist-high stagnant water to reach those areas. That can pose a problem for deputies because some drug runners are known to employ booby traps to protect their grows.
Exposure to heat and the elements can also impede deputies when trying to access the county's remote areas. "We spot (the marijuana), and the teams sometimes have to hike and cut their way in," Cavallero said. "The less hiking we have to do, the less likely someone is going to get hurt."
The Huey doesn't boast the Raven's high-tech surveillance cameras and gadgetry, but it has much more space. While the Raven can only transport two crew members and one passenger, the Huey can transport two crew members and six passengers, Cavallero said.
The Raven can't haul loads of equipment, but the Huey can perform that task adequately, Cavallero said.
There are no acquisition costs associated with the donation, Cavallero said.
The Department of Defense pays about 50 percent of the fuel cost for the helicopter. Cavallero said it will cost about $200 an hour to fuel it. He expects the sheriff's department to use the helicopter an average of no more than 50 hours per year.
The helicopter will cost about $10,000 a year for maintenance inspection.
Cavallero pointed out that fuel and maintenance inspection costs won't be paid with county general fund dollars. He said those costs will be offset through grants and asset forfeitures. "We will use the sheriff's aviation assets very responsibly and not impact the general fund," Cavallero said. "That's a commitment the sheriff and I have made, and I am very proud to say we've lived up to it."
Sheriff's Sgt. Jon McKnight will be the Huey's primary pilot, although Cavallero is also qualified to fly it.
Once the Huey is operational, Cavallero said the department will sell its OMF Symphony airplane at auction. The department has two other airplanes, a Cessna 172 and a Cessna 206, in its aviation unit.
Cavallero said the Huey will be inspected after it arrives in Merced County. It will also be subject to an annual inspection.
Meanwhile, the Huey remains inside a Sacramento County Sheriff's Department hangar at Mather Field in Rancho Cordova.
Reporter Victor A. Patton can be reached at (209) 385-2431 or vpatton@mercedsun-star.com.
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