National Wildfire Coordinating Group

S-372, Helicopter Management, 2009

S-372 Decorative banner. Group of photos depicting wildland firefighters performing various duties.

Course Overview Page ButtonCourse Delivery ButtonCourse Materials Button

Course Delivery Information

S-372 may be delivered as instructor-led (classroom) training.

Expectations of Instructors

  • Prepare thoroughly. Study the course content you are going to teach.
  • Establish a collaborative and constructive classroom environment.
  • Communicate expectations.
  • Encourage student engagement.
  • Respect student diversity in backgrounds, talent, experience, and learning style.
  • Professionally represent your instructor cadre, your home unit, and your agency.

Course Guidance

Course coordinators and instructors should be thoroughly familiar with the NWCG Standards for Course Delivery, PMS 901-1.  The NWCG Standards for Course Delivery establishes standards for all aspects of NWCG training course management and delivery. These standards should be used in conjunction with the NWCG Standards for Wildland Fire Position Qualifications, PMS 310-1, and the course-specific guidance stated in the NWCG Training Catalog.

See S-372 minimum instructor qualifications

Recommended Class Size

Recommended class size should be limited to 30 students.  Instructors should maintain a 5:1 ratio of students to instructors/coaches to facilitate exercises and discussion and to enable strong mentorship to the students. 

Cadre Meetings

Conduct initial, pre-course, daily, and close-out instructor cadre meetings. These provide opportunities to plan, organize, preview materials, review training and exercises, and identify and address concerns and issues. Consider using an informal After Action Review process. Instructor cadre meetings are critical for instructors who do not have previous experience with the course.  Additional information is located in the NWCG Standards for Course Delivery, PMS 901-1.

Course Materials

Each student must be provided the following:

Additional Materials and Equipment Needed

These materials are needed above and beyond the usual items (pens, paper, flip charts, markers, etc.).

  • References, some are agency specific or aircraft specific.  Instructor will use what is needed.
    • National, regional, and local area supplements, manuals, and policies
    • Overdue, mission, or crashed aircraft procedures/guide for the geographical area
    • Helicopter manager kit
    • Project Aviation Safety Plan
    • Regional Type 3 Helicopter Contract
    • Helicopter ARA with pertinent supplements.
    • Performance charts.
    • Conversion charts.
    • Weight and balance data sheet.
    • Aircraft flight manuals.
    • Blank reference HIGE/HOGE charts for the B3 A-Star.
    • AS350 B2 A-Star performance charts.
  • For the Aviation Business System (ABS) hands-on exercise, each pair of students will need one computer with the ABS Disconnect Application loaded.

Technical Considerations

All presentations should be downloaded and tested before the start of class to ensure compatibility with software.

PowerPoint presentations are built in an older version of Microsoft Office.  Some features may not work correctly with newer software or systems.  

For help, visit the Microsoft Office website or contact your local IT support personnel.

Course Evaluations

Use the NWCG Course Evaluation Feedback form to collect information critical to future training improvements.

Students and cadre members are asked to contribute course evaluations. Input is welcome on all aspects of the training course, including course content, pre-course work, reference materials, quality of instruction, delivery methods, and testing procedures.

 

2009 Version

All radio equipment and radio frequency use for the course (classroom simulations, field exercises, course logistics, etc.) requires specific authorization and must be coordinated and assigned through the local agency frequency coordinator or the Communications Duty Officer at the NIFC National Interagency Incident Communications Division, as appropriate. Radio equipment and frequencies for training should be requested well in advance of course start date (at least two months) and shall be released/returned to the issuing entity upon course conclusion.

 

 

Page Last Modified / Reviewed: 
2022-12-19

Please Provide Feedback

NWCG values your constructive input and we thank you for taking the time to provide feedback.

Although contact information is optional, we hope that you provide a way for us to contact you in case we need clarification on your comment. If you would like to be contacted regarding your feedback, you must provide contact information. 

Due to recent hacking behavior, we are temporarily suspending our ability to upload documents.  If you need to attach additional information, please email the file to BLM_FA_NWCG_Webmaster@blm.gov.

CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.