Firefighting aircraft 'in mothballs' overseas while country burns   :(

December 29, 2019
Sydney Morning Herald

Bushfire experts have questioned why Australian governments have not used powerful firefighting aircraft sitting dormant overseas to battle the blazes ravaging NSW and other states.

Fire & Rescue NSW commissioner Greg Mullins said dozens of aircraft were mothballed in the northern hemisphere winter that could be available "in a week".


A Super Scooper CL-415 firefighting aircraft from Canada makes a drop to protect a house during the La Tuna Fire on September 3, 2017 near Burbank, California.

He said an aircraft worth testing was the Bombardier CL-415, a twin turbo-prop purpose-built aircraft capable of dropping 6000 litres and scooping water from the lakes, rivers and the ocean. But "Australia hasn't touched them yet", Mr Mullins said.

DoSomething founder Jon Dee, whose house has been under threat in the Blue Mountains, said eight Hercules aircraft specially equipped for firefighting were available in the United States.


In an email exchange seen by The Sun-Herald, the US Forests Service said the aircraft were "probably available" but the service had not received any approach from the Australian authorities.

"We've lost over 100 homes in the Blue Mountains," Mr Dee said. "If we'd had far bigger aerial support, how many of those homes could have been spared from the fires?"

Mr Mullins said he was aware of the US Hercules aircraft, but was not convinced it was the best water bomber for Australia's needs.

The federal government provided $11 million to bolster aerial firefighting capabilities earlier this month, but Mr Mullins said it was "smoke and mirrors" and "too little too late".

"What I and 29 other former chiefs are saying is that with longer and overlapping fire seasons it is just very clear that we are going to run out of large aircraft," he said.

"They should be looking at these scooping aircraft because Croatia, Italy France, Portugal and Canada have all got them and they are all in mothballs in winter. There are dozens of them and they are cheaper than jets.

"If they [the government] wanted to make an impact, just about every state and territory could have a couple of them if the government kicked the tin.

"They could get on to the Canadian government and I am sure they would be here in a week. They'd have as many as we want."

Mr Mullins' comments came as 82 blazes continued across the state on Saturday, half of which are yet to be contained, and a "very high" fire danger warning was in place for much of the east coast.

David Littleproud, minister for Natural Disaster and Emergency Management, said in a statement that aerial firefighting needs highly-specialised training which our air force pilots do not have.

"Converting the Hercules C130 for water-bombing would take considerable engineering and time to complete," he said. "Taking the Hercules out of military service would also leave Australian troops on the battlefield without the support they need."

The NSW Rural Fire Service said in a statement that it has more than 135 aircraft available on contract or on a "call when needed". As well, it has four owned by the NSW RFS and NSW Government - three helicopters and the Boeing 737 "Large Air Tanker".

"A number of aircraft have been sourced from overseas through contacts with third-party companies and the NSW RFS, as per the Service’s requirements," the statement said.

"This season, the NSW RFS has 4 Large Air Tankers (LAT) and a Very Large Air Tanker (VLAT) available for deployment across the State. This is the most number of LATs/VLAT engaged by the NSW RFS during a bush fire season on record. Due to the severity of the fire season, two extra LATs were contracted by the NSW RFS.

"The NSW RFS continues to work closely with the National Aerial Fire Fighting Centre (NAFC) to assess aerial firefighting capabilities and identify new technologies."

Correction: A previous version of this story said Greg Mullins is a former Rural Fire Service commissioner.

   

Jeez - how old is Greg Mulllins now?  I used to date his sister.... and she'd be... well into her 60's... does he know that much about aircraft?  I thought the C-130's were the most effective and accurate... but they can't scoop water out of a lake with a pass...

Maybe that Canadian thing is the go....

I'd be impressed with this....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWVc3Gc7_xM

Bit familiar from around here - the little guys have been scooping water on the lakes ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHuoXD_VmBs

Thick wing for lift... large flap area... wing fences for stability.... (hmmm) ... slow and steady... engines on top to avoid water intake...

if its up to the states then why is morrison holding this up?

Spot

Spotty is getting tongue tied as ScoMo does not control the States.

But, while everything seems so clear and simple while sitting on the armchair waving the arms about, the reality is often much more complicated.

A good article from the ABC so it MUST be true.



Are bigger water bombers the answer to Australia's bushfire woes?
By national regional and rural reporter Jess Davis Updated 15 Nov 2019, 2:05pm

https://www.abc.net.au/cm/lb/11704916/data/teaser-fire-data.jpg


VIDEO: Fire retardant dropped on fires and residential houses (ABC News)

RELATED STORY: Former fire chiefs 'tried to warn PM ' to bring in more water-bombers ahead of bushfire season
RELATED STORY: The three factors that demand Scott Morrison rethink his approach to climate change
RELATED STORY: Firefighting veteran Mullins is scared — and says everyone else should be too

It has become a familiar and reassuring sight — planes and helicopters dumping loads of water and fire retardant on out-of-control blazes.

Key points:
After this week's catastrophic fire levels, experts are asking if we have enough firefighting aircraft available year-round
Large aircraft and helicopters are expensive to lease, so firefighters borrow aircraft from the northern hemisphere when needed
Fire seasons are overlapping between the northern and southern hemispheres, so aircraft may not always be available
But experts are warning that fire services do not have enough large aircraft to deal with the unprecedented magnitude of fires we are now faced with.

Former NSW Deputy Fire and Rescue commissioner Ken Thompson said Australia needed to invest in more large aircraft that are available year-round.

"We've got real concerns about the impact that climate change is having on fire behaviour and we've got very serious concerns about the small numbers of large aircraft that are available to support firefighters and local communities," he said.

"What we really need is the large, high-volume water bombers that can deliver really large amounts of water very quickly to serious fires."

Read on and be informed here

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11-15/are-bigger-water-bombers-the-answer-to-bushfire-woes/11705502

Scumo's arms growing shorter and pockets growing deeper by the day :(

The looney Greeny's backward child's mind is growing weaker. There is a rumor that her autistic type behavior began after she was vaccinated!!!!

But as always everything is not quite as reported in the GetUp! propaganda that BlackDay mindlessly parrots.


U.S. and Canada send firefighters to Australia
AuthorBill GabbertPosted onDecember 5, 2019

A total of 42 firefighters from North America will be assisting with the suppression of bushfires

https://wildfiretoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/HelpFromCanada-1-900x439.jpg
21 Canadian fire management personnel received a warm welcome at the Sydney airport December 5  from @NSWRFS, @AFACnews, and @canadadownunder. These personnel from Parks, ON, MB, SK, AB & BC, are expected to return to Canada in early January. CIFFC photo.

Australia has just moved into their summer, but firefighters in New South Wales, Queensland, and Victoria have been dealing with exceptionally large numbers of massive bushfires for weeks.

Canada and the United States are each sending 21 firefighters down under to assist their Australian brothers and sisters.

The U.S. personnel will  be representing the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Forest Service. The employees are coming from Alaska, Nevada, Montana, Colorado, Arizona, Idaho, Utah, California, Oregon, Hawaii, and Virginia.

The U.S. firefighters departed from the San Francisco International
Airport on Thursday, December 5. The Canadians arrived in Sydney December 5.

This is the first time Canadian firefighters have been deployed to Australia under the Exchange of Wildland Fire Management Resources Agreement.

The last fire assistance between the U.S and Australia was in August of 2018 when 138 Australian and New Zealand wildfire management personnel worked in the U.S. for almost 30 days to assist with wildfire suppression efforts in Northern California and the Northwest. The personnel from the Southern Hemisphere filled critical needs during the peak of the western fire season for mid-level fireline management, helicopter operations, and structure protection.

The last time the U.S sent firefighters to Australia was in 2010.

https://wildfiretoday.com/2019/12/05/u-s-and-canada-send-firefighters-to-australia/

Well, the Qld State Gov. would sooner spend 10 million dollars on an application to hold the Olympic Games............so the labrats in Qld don't give a crap about the people........either voters or the firefighters.......

The Qld imposter Labor "Govt" is expected to collapse at the next Qld election.

Now West Australia and the Socialist State of Victoria are glowing in the night.

I tend to agree with an American data analyst whose comments I read the other night

it is his belief the Oz govt. does not want to control the fires -- that the fires in most instances were result of arson and deliberate mismanagement -- that they know what they want burned and that this was decided in advance

there was a reminder somewhere from someone else to the Oz govt., i.e. that treason remains a hanging offence.  I doubt it does, for that was the purpose behind the Jack Ryan drama, similar in import at the time to the Port Arthur 'quick, grab their guns' drama

unlike Juliar, I don't trust any Australian politicians in anything they do or say.  They're a mafia, imo, and the Godfathers are overseas

Now a word from our leaders steering Australia towards wealth and prosperity.


Boost for Australia’s Aerial Firefighting Capability
DEC 12 2019

https://i.postimg.cc/T3J1WLZb/Capture.png

The Australian Government will boost the country’s aerial firefighting capabilities by $11 million.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said this additional funding would see more specialised firefighting aircraft take to the skies to keep Australians safe this summer.

“In response to the request from our national fire chiefs we’re backing our firefighters and our water bombing fleet with an extra $11 million boost. That’s on top of the $15 million we already deliver each year for aerial firefighting to tackle what has already been a devastating fire season,” the Prime Minister said.

“Each bushfire season we take the advice of the states and experts about what we can do to keep Australians safe. As we continue into this hot and dry bushfire season we want to ensure our fireys get the aerial support they need and have asked for.

“We saw how useful our extra support was last season which is why we’re boosting it again this year.

“As we’ve said all along, my government stands ready to deliver whatever further assistance is asked of us by the states as they battle these devastating fires.”

Minister for Natural Disaster and Emergency Management David Littleproud said the additional funding announced today would enable annual lease periods of firefighting aircraft to be extended and ensures the right mix and type of aircraft are available to protect communities this summer.

“We recognise the vital role that aerial firefighting plays in protecting communities, essential infrastructure, and environmental values, as well as supporting firefighters on the ground,” Minister Littleproud said.

“Once again, we owe a debt of gratitude to our career and volunteer emergency services who are out there protecting our communities in the face of very difficult conditions.”

“It is clear we are facing longer and more intense seasons, and as this summer has only just begun we have already seen devastating fires tear through communities right across the country.

“Sadly, bushfires are part of the Australian landscape and while we cannot always prevent them, we can prepare for them and ensure that we are responding in the most effective way.”

The National Aerial Firefighting Centre has more than 140 aircraft at its disposal to be directed to wherever they are needed. These aircraft, contracted on behalf of state and territory governments, are supplemented by additional state owned, and state contracted aircraft and other aircraft hired to meet peak demand across Australia. In total more than 500 aircraft, provided by over 150 operators, are available for firefighting across Australia.

Blackday's trashy thread is placed in mothballs.

Mothball's is OS? Hope she stays there.