Yesterday I read a short article about an Ericsson Air Crane that has or will soon be delivered to the Korean Forest Service., Bill Gabbert of Fire Aviation wrote about this same Air Crane in November while she was still being tested prior to delivery to Korea. This article gave me pause to consider that over the years that I have been writing this blog and looked at countless videos of aerial wildfire operations across the world. Perhaps it is the distinctive look of the Air Crane while she is fire fighting configuration, but I have seen her in several videos while she is in firefighting service outside of the United States. With her large capacity tank, on the order of 3,000 gallons, and her ability to scoop water from a water source, she is a very valuable part of the aerial wildland firefighting fleet of aircraft.
I am not sure if I have seen an Air Crane in New Jersey, if I did I believe that she would have been doing work on utility transmission lines. And It would have been from a distance.
I am very fond of the Air Crane because she was among the first aerial firefighting aircraft that I wrote about over ten years ago. I am very grateful to Kenny Chapman, long-time pilot of an Erickson Air Crane who answered my questions and walked me through fighting fires with an Air Crane. I occasionally correspond with Kenny over social media, he is a gentleman and he always answers my question. Thank-you Kenny for introducing me to the Air Crane and for giving me a glimpse up close and personal of the Air Crane.
I never tire of the Air Crane and over the years I have shared numerous videos of the Air Crane in action both working wildfires and doing other heavy lifting, you may read them here.
Sometimes a picture, or in this case a video, is indeed worth a thousand words. I am going to share a 20 minute video about the Ericsson Air Crane by B Dudas Productions where you will see her perform firefighting and other duties. Enjoy.
Direct link to video by B Dudas Productions
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