By Elan Head | August 26, 2016 Estimated reading time 5 minutes, 10 seconds.
The family of Monzoon Bucket co-inventor Henry Stevenson gathered in Nelson, B.C., on Aug. 13 as Kootenay Valley Helicopters put on a flying display with an original bucket. Douglas Noblet Photo
Earlier this month, a unique demonstration took place at the airport in Nelson, British Columbia — a flying display with one of the first helicopter firefighting buckets, the Monzoon Bucket.
Yes, that’s “Monzoon” with a “z”. The distinctive spelling was part of the branding for the bucket, which was developed in Nelson and sold in kit form through the 1960s.
The inventors of the bucket were pilot Jim Grady of Okanagan Helicopters — which in the 1950s was the largest helicopter operator in North America — and Henry Stevenson, the owner of Stevenson Machinery Ltd., the Nelson machine shop founded by his father.
Developed in the 1960s, the Monzoon Bucket still performs surprisingly well today, according to pilot Jeff Parker. Douglas Noblet Photo
As recently described in Vertical magazine, aerial firefighting was still in its infancy when Grady and Stevenson conceived of a bucket that could be suspended underneath a helicopter and easily refilled while hovering over a convenient water source.
The partners based their design on a standard oil or gasoline drum, modifying the base of the drum with a valve assembly with electric solenoid release. As with modern firefighting buckets, the pilot could open the valve to release water at the touch of a switch.
According to Henry Stevenson’s son, Gerry Stevenson, perfecting the design took plenty of trial and error. “I remember this as a kid, watching the number of things they were trying,” he recalled.
Eventually the inventors developed a functional product, and received a patent for their “helicopter water dumping bucket” in 1965. They sold more than 300 Monzoon Bucket conversion kits across Canada, the United States, and as far away as Australia.
“They would tell people, all you have to provide is the bucket,” said Gerry Stevenson. “They [were] quite successful with that for a number of years.”
With its ability to be refilled while hovering over a convenient water source, the Monzoon Bucket had a lasting influence on aerial firefighting. Douglas Noblet Photo
Although the Monzoon Bucket was eventually replaced by larger and more portable products, it had a lasting influence on the aerial firefighting industry. It also found some other applications, including stocking remote mountain lakes with fish fingerlings.
“I always think of it as my family’s legacy,” said Stevenson.
Henry Stevenson passed away last year at the age of 99, but his wife, Audrey, turned 90 this month. With the family gathering in Nelson for the birthday celebration, the Stevensons had a unique opportunity to also celebrate Harry’s legacy.
Gerry Stevenson had previously managed to track down an original Monzoon Bucket in a hangar in Penticton, B.C., and this reconditioned bucket was loaned to the Stevenson family for a flight demonstration. On Aug. 13, 2016, with Kootenay Valley Helicopters pilot Jeff Parker at the controls of an Airbus Helicopters H125, the Monzoon Bucket flew again.
“It flew great,” Parker told Skies. “You could probably go fight fire with that bucket today.”
Because the bucket’s solenoid valve was intended for a lower voltage electrical system, Kootenay Valley Helicopters’ Rob Taylor used a voltage converter with it as a precaution, but he said that the set-up was otherwise straightforward.
The Monzoon Bucket that was used for the demo has been promised to a museum, but Gerry Stevenson hopes that there are still a few out there that haven’t yet been turned into fire pits.
“I would really like to know if there’s another one that shows up,” he said.
