The smokejumper program was initiated in June of 1940, with the first training location just outside of Missoula, Mont., making the Missoula base the birthplace of smokejumping. While the program has evolved over the past 65 years, their objective of doing efficient initial aerial attack on remote wildfires still remains today. The Missoula base hosts Region 1 rookie training, which is made up of the West Yellowstone, Mont., Missoula, Mont., and Grangeville, Idaho jump bases. There are currently 277 U.S. Forest Service jumpers nationwide at seven Forest Service bases throughout the Northern Rockies, with two additional bases managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Boise and Alaska. Most rookies that are selected have about five years of prior fire experience and have worked on initial attack crews in the past. Once chosen, the rookies must survive a grueling five-week training beginning in May that goes well beyond learning how to jump out of an airplane. If they are fortunate enough to earn their wings, they become a member of wildland firefighting’s elite smokejumpers.