Valour comes in many forms.....

[muffett.2008]

...........and is often unnoticed and unrewarded.

It's hot and dry on the Eastern Seaboard here in OZ, weeks on end over 40 degrees C. and fires, 55 seperate ones this last week, a fair few of them deliberately lit.

The local lads have been waterbombing different blazes in the Hunter Valley since Tuesday, a constant stream of modified Cropdusters and Specialist Fire Fighting Aircraft doing 15 minute turnarounds to select fire fronts from dawn until well after dark non stop for a week.

Now I don't know what renumeration or benefits available to the Companies owning these aircraft are, or what consideration is given to the pilots who give the time, paid or unpaid, but I do know the costs related to fuel and Aircraft Maintainance are very high.

Spending hours in a Spotter, recording and relaying hotspot co-ordinates is no fun, stinking hot and buffetted by updrafts tends to upset the old tummy, but to watch the precision that these local Ag. Pilots show in their work, makes you realise that everyone of them is an Ace.

To be in the air with that sort of payload, dump it with accuracy, return to base, refill both fuel and retardant and be back to drop again in such a short time shows incredible co-operation between both pilots and very skilled groundcrew, who would normally be pottering around doing their daily grind at a fraction of the speed shown over the last week.

These blokes will probably just get a pat on the back and a 'well done', but in my book they epitomise the real Aussie spirit........and every one of them is a hero.

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