For Scale

[AFJon]

Terrain has a lot to do with what assets are employed.

Examples around me are the Waldo Canyon fire. Very rough terrain and limited use of the big aircraft, while the Black Forest fire with relatively flat terrain got knocked down with a lot of large aircraft (Dc-10, C-130's) and rotary aircraft with the "bambi buckets".

Video showing the c-130s equipped with the MAFFS.

MAFFS Archives - Fire Aviation

[Surpmil]

British Columbia is not very flat. The Mars operated here for decades with eminent success and efficiency.

The Hawaii Mars has nav equipment that allows it to fly down a valley full of smoke in the dark, let alone on a clear day.

Politicians: one of the best investments you can make.

[CINDERS]

West Au has just taken delivery (Leased) of a water jet with 11,000Ltr capacity, why our Govt procrastinates on buying these outright has got me perplexed as if the country has say a fleet of 10 they could be strategically placed over our land for these eventualities. But in discussing things with a mate today over this it is so very funny the Govt is broke until we had this event then they turf in $2B must have a forest of $100 note trees in Canberra!
You know for the farmers it is a tragedy as to lose herds of cattle whether beef or dairy and flocks of sheep or pigs can undo all the careful genetic selection of that farm that has taken decades to do and it will be decades before the poor bloody farmers are in a healthy spot again.

I do not know how true this one is or it may be sensationalism journalists at work but a source informed me that our PM apparently stated if a farmer has not paid his tax debt if they have one they will not get assistance for the fire damage until the debt is paid, I hope that is not true and if it is then he is not the man for the top job I am afraid and should hang his head in shame. The monies to rebuild should be free goodness knows the farmers are the salt of the earth.....

[Surpmil]

The trouble with wheeled tankers is that they land, connect a bunch of hoses and pump the water or retardant aboard in what, 10 or 15 minutes? Flying boats skim down the surface of whatever body of water, the filling nozzles go down into the water and in a minute or two they're full and on their way back to the fire.

Wheeled tankers comparatively are like a Grand Prix pit stop in 1925 versus one in 2005.

That's the lovely thing about fires Cinders: no one counts the cost, no one says, "How much are you spending?". Politicians love that almost as much as bankers: nothing's too expensive and there's enough lolly to keep everyone quiet even if the court favourites get the most.

Savvy politicos have even been known to see that their friends are standing in the right spots when the money bombers make their drops, and what goes around has been known to come around!

[AFJon]

The Amphibian aircraft are great if there a large enough body of water nearby...



Sadly dangerous work as the Coulson C-130 went down in NSW. RIP to the crew and prayers for the families.