MAY 15, 2025 – U.S. Soldiers with the Pennsylvania National Guard’s 28th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade crewed a CH-47 Chinook helicopter to assist the U.S. Coast Guard by transporting three buoys May 7 in the Chesapeake Bay and Delaware Bay.
During the winter, buoys are often displaced and washed up on beaches inaccessible to Coast Guard boats. The Chinook can move loads weighing several tons, easily carrying the approximately 1,500-pound buoys to be refitted or to their permanent locations.
“This winter, a lot of ice came down Delaware Bay here and that caused the mooring to break, which led to the buoy washing up on the beach,” Coast Guard Senior Chief John Kopp said. “It makes it so much easier having the capability from the Army to help us out. The buoy weighs about 1,500 pounds, so moving it by hand is not very practical.”
The buoy washed up in a populated residential area, with many locals active on social media advocating for its removal. That buoy was accessible to a crewmember who hooked it to the cable lowered from the helicopter. Without a rig-up team at the bottom able to access the buoy, a crew chief hangs down through a removable door in the bottom of the helicopter.
“You have your shepherd’s pole, which is about six or seven feet long, you call the pilots to where they need to be, you hook the pole onto the loop or whatever you’re grabbing,” said Sgt. Ronan Perloff, a crew chief with the 28th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade, 28th Infantry Division, Pennsylvania Army National Guard.
Perloff said he was not very experienced but said the job “went pretty well; I’m happy with it, and I think everybody else is.”
The Coast Guard contacted the Pennsylvania Guard for assistance, having worked together before on similar missions.
“It was great, I look forward to working with them again,” said Maj. Carlton Kinzer, 628th Aviation Support Battalion commander, who piloted the flight.
This ongoing partnership between the Army National Guard and the U.S. Coast Guard illustrates how their different strengths and capabilities can come together to solve problems and keep Americans safe.
By Sgt. 1st Class Zane Craig
Pennsylvania National Guard