2020 wildfire Season: IMET deployments (July 4 to July 19th)

Wildfires have been ramping up in the western portion of the United States and this means that NWS Incident Meteorologists (IMET) continue to be deployed on assignments that can last up to two weeks. Information on IMET deployments is obtained from the US National Weather Service IMET Facebook Page. Unless otherwise specified, all fire size information comes from Inciweb. IMETs save lives, thanks to all the IMETs whether you are currently in the field, awaiting deployment or returned from deployment.

Deployments that may have ended:

On July 5 an IMET from the US NWS Western Region Headquarters was deployed to the Polles Fire in the Tonto National Forest near Payson, Arizona. As I write this the fire has burned 628 acres and is reported to be at 92 percent containment (last update on July 15th)

On July 6 an IMET from the US NWS San Francisco Bay Area/Monterey California Weather Forecast Office was deployed to the Crews Fire (CAL Fire incident) near Gilroy, California. CAL Fire reports that the fire burned 5,513 acres and was extinguished on July 13th.

Two IMETs were deployed on July 7th. A US NWS IMET from the Tucson, Arizona Weather Forecast Office was deployed to the Bighorn Fire in the Coronado National Forest near Tucson, Arizona, 119,741 acres have burned. Here is a July 2nd story from KOLD featuring an IMET reporting on heavy monsoon like rains. While this report is now dated, it illustrates the importance of the work of IMETs. A second IMET, this one from the US NWS Weather Forecast Office in Reno Nevada was deployed to the Numbers Fire. The Numbers Fire is reported to be 100 percent contained, having burned 18,380 acres (last updated on July 13th).

Deployments in the last week:

No deployments that I know of from July 8 through July 13th.

An IMET from the US NWS Weather Forecast Office in Hanford, California was deployed to the Mineral Fire on July 14. The Mineral Fire is a CAL Fire incident, having burned 28,221 acres near Coalinga, California.

On July 15th, two IMETS were deployed. The first IMET was from the US NWS Weather Forecast Office in Flagstaff, Arizona, deployed to the Turkey Farm Road Fire near St. George, Utah. The fire is burning on Utah State Lands, as of July 16th the fire had mapped at 11,993 acres according to a July 18th report from Utah Fire Info. The fire was caused by fireworks, human caused. 

The second IMET deployed on July 15th came from the US NWS at Albuquerque New Mexico, deployed to the Blue River 2 fire near San Carlos, Arizona. The fire which has burned 28,51 acres, is burning on lands of the San Carlos Apache Nation.

On July 16th, a US NWS IMET from the Flagstaff Arizona Weather Forecast Office was deployed to the Big Summit Fire near Panaca, Nevada. 8,461 acres have burned to date.

On July 19th an IMET from the US NWS Weather Forecast Office in Reno, Nevada was deployed to the Hog Fire (a CAL Fire Incident) that has burned 5,800 acres near Susanville, California.

About being a volunteer firefighter and NJFFS wildland firefighter: from a retired NJFFS State Warden

Perhaps some of you reading this are wondering what is like to be a volunteer firefighter and/or a wildland firefighter in New Jersey. Others of you may just be curious, as I always am, about learning more about the world of firefighting. If so, then you will enjoy this 39 minute video by PintheQ Productions where he interviews former State Fire Warden (with the New Jersey Forest Fire Service), Maris Gabliks. Maris is also an active member and past president (and former chief) of the Adelphia Fire Company located in Howell Township (Monmouth County, NJ). The gentleman at PintheQ Productions, does documentaries focusing on firefighting. Enjoy.

Direct link to PintheQ Productions Episode 39 on Maris Gabliks

Dozers working wildfires in Florida

One of the types of equipment that wildland firefighters on the ground use to fight wildfires are bull dozers. In the theory that a picture is worth a thousand words, I wanted to find some footage for you. And as I am from the east coast of the United States, I wanted to find some footage of dozers from one of the east coast states. I was in luck when I found three short videos showing dozers in action from Florida. As with any type of wildland firefighting, working a dozer is not without some risk. Kudos all dozer operators. Thanks for keeping us safe.

Direct link to video from Bill Oke

Direct link to video from First Due Fire Photography

Direct link to video from First Due Fire Photography

2020 New Jersey wildfire season: L Field Fire photos

I wrote about the L Field Fire on Friday July 10th. I took some down time this weekend. This morning, I was catching up with news from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) to see what has been going on since Friday when I saw a post on the New Jersey Forest Fire Service (July 10th at 3:57 PM) with some photos of the L Field Fire that burned 204 acres in the Colliers Mills Wildland Management Area. The fire was fully contained thanks to the good work of the NJFFS crews with help from Friday's rains. I thought that you might like to see the posted photos so I am embedding the July 10th Facebook post from the NJFFS at the end of this e-mail. Nice job and thanks to all NJFFS crews on the ground and in the air along with any mutual aid for working to contain this fire, with the help of Friday's rain.

I want to pause to remind everyone that the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, like any other agency fights a lot of very small fires. In the case of the NJFFS, I believe that wildfires or brush fires can be as small as 1/4 of an acre. I have no statistics to share with on this years fires, but I suspect that there are a lot of smaller fires, by this I mean fires under 10 acres. NJFFS crews work just as hard on these small brush fires as they do on the larger wildfires. I may not know about most of these smaller brush fires, that doesn't matter. I know that you are there working these fires, some of which may have been close to my home. They are doing what they do to keep their residents in New Jersey safe. So, this resident wants to pause and say thank-you NJFFS for keeping us safe.

2020 New Jersey wildfire season: L Field Fire (July 9th)

I want to thank a knowledgeable friend for telling me about the L Field Fire that was first reported by a New Jersey Forest Fire Service aircraft on July 9th. At last report from my friends at the NJFFS Section B10 (note this page may be revised in a day or so) the L Field Fire has burned 204 acres and was at 80 percent containment in the Collier Mills Wildlife Management Area near the Cassville section of Jackson NJ. The fire was large enough that a staging area was set up at a Church on Route 528 near the fire. I also understand that one of the New Jersey Forest Fire Service helicopters, Delta 3 flew the fire yesterday.

As I write this the rains from Tropical Storm Fay have impacted all of New Jersey, so I expect that the L Field Fire may be fully contained.  It burned in a remote section of the Colliers Mill WMA and no structures were threatened. I do not know exactly where the L Field Fire was located, but I saved an image from Google Earth for you so you can get a sense of where the fire was located.

More information about this fire may be obtained from the following media sites.

MidJerseyNews (July 9th) with pictures

Asbury Park Press  (July 9th) with a photo

New Jersey Advance Media (July 10th)

Thanks to all the firefighters on the ground and in the air who worked to contain this fire before the rains came.

2019 wildfire season: Engine 606 crew video

Enjoy this video summarizing the 2019 season of the US Forest Service engine 606 crew. Engine 606 is out of Minturn, Colorado.

Direct link to video on Youtube

2020 wildfire season: Tankers, SEATs and Helicopters on Federal Contract

One of my go to places to find out about Federal firefighting aviation contracts is Bill Gabbert's Fire Aviation where he writes extensively about contracting, here is a link to articles that Bill has tagged as about contracting. I check his Fire Aviation website a few times a week. While media outlets may cover local to them Federal firefighting aviation contracts, and various publications may focus on contracts affecting the type of aircraft they write about, Bill offers one stop shopping, so to speak. 

As I write a blog on aerial wildland firefighting, I want to spend a little time highlighting some of Bill's posts on the status of federal contracts for  air tankers, single-engine airtankers (SEATs) and helicopters. Bill kudos to you for the great job you do with following the contracts. 

Air Tankers

Exclusive Use Contracts: I refer you to Bill's May 2nd post on Fire Aviation. The US Forest Service has thirteen air tankers on Exclusive Use Contracts with a mandatory availability period (MAP) of 160 days. Start dates range from March 12 to May 19.

• 2 DC-10 tankers (10 Tanker)
• 1 C130Q (Coulson)
• 2 MD-87 tankers (Aero Air)
• 4 RJ85 tankers (Aero Flite)
• 4 BAe tankers (Neptune Aviation)

Call When Needed Activations: You will want to read Bill's July 2nd article on call when needed (CWN) activations. There are eleven tankers under CWN contract with a 90 day mandatory availability period of 90 days with start dates ranging from the end of May through the middle of June.

• 1 DC-10 tanker (10 Tanker)
• 4 MD-87 tankers (Aero Air)
• 1 Boeing 737 tanker (Coulson)
• 5 BAe-146 tankers (Neptune Aviation)

Adding the eleven tankers on exclusive use contract to the thirteen tankers on CWN contract and you get 24 air tankers that will be available for much of the wildfire season. 

Single-Engine Air Tankers (SEATs): According to Bill's April 13th article on Fire Aviation there will be thirty-four SEATs on contract with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

Helicopters: Bill has written several articles in the last couple of months about the status of helicopter contracts. I refer you to what I think is the latest article that he wrote on May 30th where he reported on thirty-six helicopters on contract with the US Forest Service. Specifically, there are twenty-four type 1 helicopters and twelve type 2 helicopters on 90 day exclusive use contract with the US Forest Service. I will leave you to read Bill's article for a table where he lists the thirty-six helicopters on contract.

Bill Gabbert reports in a March 26th article (scroll down for the discussion) that the number of large air tankers on contract since 2013 has ranged from a low of 13 to a high of 21.  I admit to not knowing the history of the SEAT and helicopter contracts at the present time.

I am thankful for these aerial resources on contract to help the firefighters on the ground. Stay safe and thanks to the pilots, and support staff. 

RIP: 14 wildland firefighters died at South Canyon Fire (July 6, 1994)

On July 6, 1994 the South Canyon Fire on Storm King Mountain in Colorado blew up and the winds shifted. Fourteen wildland firefighters died in that day: nine from the Prineville Hotshots, three smokejumpers and two helitack crew members. I will always remember this fire because in the very early days of doing this blog, I was doing a lot of reading. I came across John N. Maclean's book, Fire on the Mountain. I probably read the book sometime in late 2008 or early 2009. It made an impression on me for the shear number of lives lost that day. To read more about the South Canyon Fire, go to this page on Always Remember

RIP Storm King 14. I will always remember.

IMET deployments (July 3)

National Weather Service (NWS)  Incident Meteorologists (IMET) continue to be deployed to wildfires. Thank-you IMETs for your work on wildfires to keep the firefighters safe. IMETs save lives. Deployments are for no longer then two weeks. Here are the deployments since June 16th. Note the variation in fire size in the list below.

On June 17, US National Weather Service Tucson Arizona IMET was deployed to the Bighorn Fire that was burning in the Coronado National Forest near Oro Valley, AZ. As I write this the Bighorn Fire has burned 118,804 acres.

On June 19, an IMET from the US National Weather Service Cheyenne Wyoming was deployed to the Sand Creek Fire. I wrote about the Sand Creek Fire here. The Sand Creek Fire has burned 97 acres in a remote section of the San Juan Forest near Durango, Colorado.

An US National Weather Service IMET from the El Paso Texas NWS Weather Forecast Office was deployed to the Vics Peak Fire on June 25th. The Vics Peak Fire has burned 11,463 acres in the Cibola National Forest and National Grassland near Truth or Consequences, New Mexico.

An IMET from the US National Weather Service Reno Nevada was deployed to the Monarch Fire on June 25. The Monarch Fire has burned 2,324 acres. The Monarch Fire is near Carson City, Nevada.

On June 29, an IMET from the US National Weather Service Las Vagas, Nevada was deployed to the Mahogany Fire in the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest near Mt. Charleston, Nevada. The Mahogany Fire has burned 2,794 acres.

On June 29, an IMET from the US National Weather Service in Salt Lake City, Utah was deployed to the Canal Fire near Oak City, Utah. The Canal Fire has burned 76,647 acres.

Finally, on June 30 an US National Weather Service IMET from the Flagstaff Arizona Weather Forecast Office was deployed to the Wood Springs 2 Fire near Ganado, Arizona. This wildfire has burned 11,857 acres.

What NWS Incident Meteorologists (IMETs) do on a wildfire from an IMET

I was perusing the NWS IMET Facebook page this morning to see what our wonderful Incident Meteorologist (IMETs) are doing. I saw that more IMETs have been deployed to wildfires, I will get to that on Friday. I am always looking for good videos about what IMETs do so when I came across this video by IMET Tom Bird on the NWS IMET Facebook page I knew that had to share it with you. Mr. Bird is a Meteorologist from the El Paso-Santa Teresa Weather Weather Forecast Office, as I write this, is assigned as an Incident Meteorologist to the Vics Peak Fire.

The video takes just under eleven minutes. It is a great video, as he explains in simple language about why IMETs are important and about the tools they use. He shows you some of the computer programs that he uses from the NWS as well as other weather sites and some of the tools that he carries with him in his belt pack. IMETs save lives. 

RIP Granite Mountain Hotshots June 30 2013

Obtained on June 30, 2020 from https://azstateparks.com/hotshots/the-hotshots/about-the-hotshots

The tragic loss of nineteen members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots while fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire near Prescott, Arizona on the afternoon of June 30, 2013 is seared in my memory because I got an e-mail from a family member who was visiting Prescott, they sent me a photo of a tanker dropping on the fire. It was later that day that I heard about the tragic loss of sixteen members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots. I wondered about the timing of the photo that I received. I will never know. My family member was stunned when they heard about the deaths.

So, I pause today to remember the loss of the Granite Mountain Hotshots that day. I pray for all who died that day and their families, friends, and all who loved them. I remember the lone survivor Brandon McDonough.

A brief look at the KMAX helicopter

Ever so often over the years that I have been writing this blog on aerial wildland firefighting I have come across reports and/or videos of KMAX helicopters working wildfires, mostly in the western United States. For no apparent reason I was curious about the KMAX so I did a search on Youtube and come across the two videos that I am embedding below. I learned a lot about the KMAX by watching these videos and I hope you do as well.

Direct link to video uploaded by blancolirio on Youtube 

I learned about the video below from blancolirio.

Direct link to video uploaded by Jay B.

Friday Fun (June 27th)

I don't know about you but I am in the mood for a little Friday fun. So, I went through my bookmarks and saw this video about the variety of things helicopters were used for circa 1968. Allow about 10 minutes to watch the video.

Direct link to video on Youtube

2020 wildfire season: Sand Creek Fire (near Pagosa Springs, Colorado)

On June 19,  a US National Weather Service IMET from the NWS Office in Cheyenne Wyoming was deployed to the Sand Creek Fire burning in the San Juan National Forest near Pagosa Springs, Colorado. At the time I am writing this article, the Sand Creek Fire has burned 65 acres in a very remote area that was previously burned in 2012. According the incident overview on the Sand Creek Fire's Inciweb's page:

The Sand Creek fire was started by lightning and first reported on June 15th, 2020. It is located 21 miles northwest of Pagosa Springs, in the Piedra Special Management Area. It is currently estimated at 65 acres in size and is burning within an area previously burned during the Little Sand Fire of 2012. Smokejumpers parachuted into the fire area on June 16th. After assessing the fire on the ground, the decision was made not to engage due to hazardous snags (standing dead/damaged trees), heavy fuel loads, and difficult terrain.

Retardant drops by tankers have been made on this fire, see this June 22nd news release on Inciweb  and this June 22nd report from KRQE in Albuquerque New Mexico.

There are maps, videos, and photographs available from links on the Sand Creek Fire's Inciweb's page.

I am intrigued by this seemingly small fire because of the challenges that this wildfire has posed and because of the role of tankers and other aviation assets have played. I understand that there is a risk of more lightning on June 24th in the fire area. I do not know if the IMET that was deployed on June 19th is still onsite providing incident specific weather forecasts, if so then the IMET is providing an important service. 

National Guard Blackhawk UH-60 helicopters can be activated to fight wildfires

I do not know the exact details of how National Guard aerial assets such as the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters are activated to help fight wildfires. But I know that many State firefighting agencies have arrangements with their local National Guard, many of whom fly Blackhawks, to help fight wildfires. The videos that I found for you that I am sharing below show Utah Army National Guard UH-60 Blackhawks fighting wildfires. But it is not just out west that you will see National Guard Blackhawks. The National Guard in many States such as New York and Florida on the eastern seaboard, for example) are on call to help fight wildfires as available, and when needed and activated.

The two videos below are over five minutes each but you will get an idea of two different types of bucket operations, one dipping out of a portable tank, and the other dipping from a lake or river and then dropping on a fire (with audio).

Direct link to video on Youtube

Direct link to video on Youtube

Up close to a CAL FIRE Sikorsky S-70i Firehawk

I was perusing Youtube yesterday looking for videos of any of the Sikorsky S-70i Firehawks from either the City of San Diego, LA County, or CAL FIRE to share with you (for more information read my June 17th article). It may still be a little early to see videos of these magnificent helicopters in action, but I did find a couple of videos from Vertical Magazine taken at the HAI 2020 Heli-Expo. Both videos feature CAL FIRE pilot Brent Starr taking you on a tour of their new Sikorsky S-70i Firehawk. One is a walk around the other features her avionics. These two videos are the next best thing to seeing her in person, perhaps one day?

Direct link to video from Vertical Magazine on Youtube

Direct link to video from Vertical Magazine on Youtube

Sikorsky S-70i Firehawk

In my internet wonderings last week when I was reading about the AgustaWestland 139 Helicopter I was reminded that at least one government agency in southern California had acquired some new multi-purpose helicopters to add to their fleet of helicopters available for firefighting. As I have family and friends in San Diego County and in the Los Angeles area, and always wanting to learn more about new aviation assets, I wanted to spend some time to see what I could find out. I started with San Diego, and more specifically the City of San Diego because of family living in San Diego County. A quick internet search led me to a couple of media reports, a press release, and an article from Bill Gabbert's Fire Aviation about San Diego's new helicopter, a Sikorsky S-70i Firehawk helicopter, more on that helicopter in a moment:

ABC News10 San Diego December 12, 2020 report on new Firehawk Helicopter (with video)

San Diego News Tribune, December 12, 2020 article

Fire Aviation (November 29, 2020) on delivery of new Firehawk to the City of San Diego

In their news release announcing their new Sikorsky s-70i Firehawk, City of San Diego speaks about the capabilities of the S-70i Firehawk:

The S-70i version of the Firehawk includes wide chord rotor blades for increased payload and maneuverability, enhanced engine power, a stronger airframe than previous models, a digital cockpit with flight management system for enhanced situation awareness, and an Integrated Vehicle Health Management System to monitor the aircraft’s operational health.

The Firehawk’s military design allows it to undergo enormous physical pressure stemming from its ability to drop 1,000 gallons of water multiple times a day on a fire line. Among the improved safety features, the aircraft includes a terrain and obstacle avoidance system that alerts the air crew to the proximity of potential hazards on the ground.

I knew that CAL FIRE is in the process of acquiring new helicopter as is Los Angeles County. Thanks to Bill Gabbert's fine reporting, I found out that both of these agencies had recently acquired the S-70i Firehawk. In a November 30, 2020 Fire Aviation article, Bill Gabbert reports on LA County's acquisition of a couple of S-70i Firehawks and the anticipation of acquiring some more in the near future. Bill reported in October 2019 about CAL FIRE's plans to acquire 12 S-70i Firehawks, reporting that one had already been delivered; on May 10 2020 he reported that one LA County S-70i and a CAL FIRE S-70i were being tested in Colorado with CAL FIRE taking delivery of the second S-70i on May 22nd

My understanding from Bill's reporting, as well as this February 2020 Aerial Fire article on the S-70i Firehawk is that United Rotor added an 1,000 gallon belly tank and extended landing gear to the Sikorsky. Sikorsky is a division of Lockheed Martin, and Lockheed Martin has a nice webpage featuring the S-70i Firehawk, with a walk around, a video, and other multimedia. I had a good idea that the Sikorsky Firehawks, the older S-70 and the new S-70i are very similar to the Military's Blackhawks helicopters, but knew no specifics, thanks to this fine article by Jon Bourke in a 2018 Vertical Magazine article, "Meet the New iHawk: We fly the the Sikorsky S70i", I learned more about the development of the Sikorsky Firehawks.

I look forward to seeing and learning more about the S-70i Firehawks over the coming months. As I do, and as I find videos, I will share them on this blog.

IMET deployments (June 15th)

As the wildfire season continues to ramp up,  Incident Meteorologists (IMETs)continue to be deployed to provide onsite weather forecasts to wildfire incidents. IMETs are a national resource, and I am comforted that should the need arise, an IMET would be deployed to your State (including my home State of New Jersey) to work on a wildfire. 

IMETs save lives!

There have been a few IMET deployments since last week. As I have done the last few seasons, I will post periodically about IMET deployments. Deployments are typically for no longer than two weeks with IMETs turning over after two weeks if necessary. 

June 8, 2020: US National Weather Service Tuscon Arizona IMET deployed to Bighorn Fire in the Coronado National Forest near Oro Valley, Arizona. As I write this the Bighorn Fire has burned 13,200 acres (Bighorn Fire on Inciweb).

June 10: US National Weather Service Flagstaff Arizona IMET deployed to the Mangum Fire in the Kaibab National Forest near Fredonia, Arizona. The Mangum Fire has burned 24,708 acres (Magnum Fire on Inciweb).

June 10: US National Weather Service Alaska IMET deployed to the Isom Creek Fire burning near Stevens Village, Alaska. The Isom Creek Fire has burned 12,024 acres. (Isom Creek Fire on Inciweb).

June 11: US National Weather Service El Paso Texas IMET deployed to the Tadpole Fire in the Gila National Forest near Silver City, New Mexico. The Tadpole Fire has burned 6,600 acres (Tadpole Fire on Inciweb).

June 12: US National Weather Service Albuquerque New Mexico IMET deployed to the Bringham Fire in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests near Morenci, Arizona. The Bringham Fire has burned 14,625 acres (Bringham Fire on Inciweb).

June 15: US National Weather Service Las Vegas Nevada IMET is enroute to the Bush Fire in the Tonto National Forest near Phoenix Arizona. The Bush Fire has burned 14,371 acres. (Bush Fire on Inciweb).

AgustaWestland 139 - Los Angeles (CA) Fire Department

I have known for awhile that the Los Angeles (California) Fire Department (LAFD) got new helicopters in their multipurpose helicopter fleet. After writing about the Bell 412 helicopters on June 10th, I got interested in the AgustaWestland 139 Helicopters that replaced the older Bell 412 helicopters. Among the first places I went to in order to learn more about LAFD's AgustaWestland 139 helicopters (AW 139) is Bill Gabbert''s Fire Aviation Website where I saw his December 17, 2018 article with a link to Youtube video about the LAFD air operations program that I will link to below, and his February 19, 2020 interview with one of the LAFD pilots, Brandon Pierce, Bill recorded the interview (16 minutes and worth the time). Both articles are good reads.

Direct link to LAFD Air Ops video on Youtube 

I got interested in learning more about this very interesting helicopter with a five blade rotor and advanced avionics in the cockpit. I learned a little from the LAFD Air Ops Webpage:

Its Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6C-67C turbines, together with a state-of-the-art 5-bladed main rotor, deliver a high cruise speed even in demanding conditions at all weights. The pilots also utilize state-of-the-art night vision technology to assist ground operations and enhance safety during nighttime operations. 

 

Leading-edge technology includes a Honeywell Primus Epic fully integrated avionics system, a 4-axis digital AFCS and large flat panel colour displays in the cockpit. As a result of the new design approach the AW139 uses fewer components, benefits from integrated avionics and provides easy accessibility to all systems for simplified maintenance tasks. A 480 gallon water tank is attached to the bottom of the airship.

I wanted to know who manufactured the AW 139 and with the help of another article (June 2017) by Bill Gabbert's Fire Aviation and this article from ASD News, I learned that Leonardo (or predecessors?) manufactured the AW 139, I will leave you to go to Leonardo's site and learn about their company.

I'd like to close with two videos of the LAFD's AW 139's fighting wildfires. With a shout out to a knowledgeable friend and fire aviation photographer local to LA who confirmed that yes, you will see the AW 139 in both videos.

Direct link to video on Youtube

Direct link to video on Youtube

Bell 412 working a forest fire in Spain

I have been catching up on my reading which includes reading aerial wildland firefighting and have read about firefighting helicopters, some of which I have written about recently. One of the mid-sized helicopters that I have read about over the years, and not written about, is the Bell 412. The Bell 412 is mid-sized helicopter with four rotor blades, an off shot of the Bell 212 (two rotor blades). 

Up until 2017, the LA Fire Department had Bell 412's in their fleet. The last of these retired in 2017, replaced by the AgustaWestland 139, go here for more information. The Bell 412 served long and well with the LA Fire Department. In 2019, the Los Angeles County Fire Department still had five Bell 412's in their fleet, see Bill Gabbert's March 9, 2019 Fire Aviation article for more information, Bill interviewed Senior Pilot Tom Short. I am not personally aware of other Bell 412's in service in the United States fighting wildfires but I suspect that there may be others, either from a State, County or City agency, or perhaps on a contract.

Direct link to Youtube Video

There seem to be some Bell 412's in service outside the United States fighting wildfires. Here is a video of a Bell 412 dipping while working a wildfire in Spain last year.

Direct link to video on youtube

About a Fire Lookout in Northwestern Montana (circa 2011)

One of the things I enjoy is getting a sense of some the people involved in wildland firefighting. To that end, when I find something interesting, usually a video I will share it here. I have shared many videos from wildland fire crews summarizing their fire season, other times I have shared videos about smokejumpers, and tanker and helo pilots. This time around the video I am sharing is about a gentlemen named Leif Haugen who at the time the film was shot in 2011, has worked as a seasonal fire lookout since 2014. According to The Missoulian (April 2, 2012), the Thoma lookout, built in 1930 was restored and then reopened as a fire lookout in 2010. Leif transferred to the Thoma lookout in the 2010 summer season. Leif is a contractor when he is not a fire lookout and was involved in restoring the Thoma Fire Lookout. To the best of my knowledge, Leif is still the fire lookout at the Thoma Fire Lookout.

To read a little more about Leif, check out this Spring/Summer 2013 article from American Forests.

In 2011, Brian Bolster of Stories from Big Sky Country made a film about Leif's daily life as a solitary fire lookout. Brian is the director and cameraman, he won the Big Sky Award at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival in 2012. 

This video is a little over 15 minutes. I got a sense of Leif, and his summer work as a fire lookout. His love for the Thoma fire lookout, staffing the lookout in the summers and the mountains is clear. Brian's videography is fantastic. Enjoy. 

Direct link to The Lookout by Brian Bolster

IMETs ready to save lives: first deployment of 2020

What may have been the first NWS Incident Meteorologist (IMETs) was deployed on June 3rd. I will get to that in a minute. I love because they save lives. The are National Weather Service Meteorologists who have special training to provide incident based weather forecasts to wildland firefighters working a wildfire. They are a national resource, IMETs will go anywhere in the United States and have been deployed internationally (see for example, my January 13th post on IMET deployments to Australia).

In the video below, you will hear IMET Jeremy Wolfe discuss what IMETs do. I have shared this video a couple of times on my blog, the most recent being on August 29, 2018.

Direct link to video on Youtube

If you want more information on what IMETs do, there is a nice news release from the National Weather Service explaining what IMETs do. I have posted this at least once before on this blog, but it is worth repeating, the NWS article on IMETs may be found here. Here is an excerpt:

Incident Meteorologists (IMETs) help keep the fire crews safe by enabling responders to plan operations taking into account one of the most variable aspects of the incident — the weather. They are NWS Forecasters who have been specially trained and certified to provide weather support at a fire location.

IMETs keep firefighters safe by interpreting weather information, assessing its effect on the fire and communicating it to fire crews. Once on-site, IMETs become key members of the incident command teams and provide continuous meteorological support for the duration of the incident.

IMETs are located in numerous NWS offices across the country. Once a large wildfire has started, an IMET is contacted and given orders to travel to the site of the fire as quickly as possible. Ken Simosko, an IMET with the NWS Bismarck Weather Forecast Office (WFO), has worked five fire incidents. “You have to be ready at a moment’s notice. I have my bag ready to go so that when I get the call, I can spend my time getting spun up on the history of the fire, its current and future situation. Usually an IMET is on scene within 24 hours to 48 hours of the initial call. This depends on the mode of travel [car or plane] and how far the IMET is from the wildland fire.”

If you want to follow IMET deployments, you might want to follow the US NWS IMET Facebook page, you do not need a Facebook account to access the content. On June 3rd, an IMET from the US National Weather Service Flagstaff Arizona Weather Forecast Office was deployed to the Sawtooth Fire that is currently burning near Superior Arizona.  As I write this, according to Inciweb the Sawtooth Fire has burned 24.729 acres and is at 42 percent containment (what you see at the link will be different depending on when you access this Inciweb information on the fire as active fire information may be updated frequently. Bill Gabbert of Wildfire Today has written a couple of articles on the Sawtooth Fire, you may find them here (the link is to his tagged articles, scroll down for the first article). 

National Preparedness Levels (U.S.)

My friends at from the US National Weather Service IMET Office shared a nice video, under three minutes about the national (wildfire) preparedness level from the National Interagency Fire Center.

 

Here is a direct link to the post from the NWS IMET page. In the years that I have been writing this blog on aerial wildland firefighting, I have run into the National Preparedness Levels many times, especially when the level is four or five. Please take three minutes to watch the video. 

The current national preparedness level from the National Interagency Fire Center may be found here.

For those of you who would like complete information, here is a description of each of the five national preparedness levels from the National Interagency Fire Center:

National Preparedness Levels

The National Multi-Agency Coordination Group (NMAC) establishes Preparedness Levels throughout the calendar year to help assure that firefighting resources are ready to respond to new incidents. Preparedness Levels are dictated by fuel and weather conditions, fire activity, and resource availability.

The five Preparedness Levels range from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest level. Each Preparedness Level has specific management directions. As the Preparedness Levels rise, more federal and state employees become available for fire mobilization if needed.

Preparedness Level 1

Geographic Areas accomplish incident management objectives utilizing local resources with little or no national support.

- Conditions are not favorable to support significant wildland fire activity in most geographic areas.

- Resource capability is adequate with little or no mobilization of resources occurring through the National Interagency Coordination Center.

- Potential for emerging significant wildland fires is expected to remain minimal.

Preparedness Level 2

Active Geographic Areas (GA's) are unable to independently accomplish incident management objectives. Resource capability remains stable enough nationally to sustain incident operations and meet objectives in active GA's.

- Significant wildland fire activity is increasing in a few geographic areas.

- Resources within most geographic areas are adequate to manage the current situation, with light to moderate mobilization of resources occurring through the National Interagency Coordination Center.

- Potential for emerging significant wildland fires is normal to below normal for the time of year.

Preparedness Level 3

Mobilization of resources nationally is required to sustain incident management operations in the active Geographic Areas (GA's). National priorities established as a necessary measure to address the heavy and persistent demand for shared resources among active GA's.

- Significant wildland fire activity is occurring in multiple geographic areas, with Incident Management Teams (IMTs) actively engaged.

- Mobilization of resources through the National Interagency Coordination Center is moderate to heavy.

- Potential for emerging significant wildland fires is normal for the time of year.

Preparedness Level 4

Shared resources are heavily committed. National mobilization trends affect all Geographic Areas (GA's) and regularly occur over larger and larger distances. National priorities govern resources of all types. Heavy demand on inactive/low activity GA's with low levels of activity for available resources.

- Significant wildland fire activity is occurring in multiple geographic areas; significant commitment of Incident Management Teams.

- NICC increasingly engages GACCs in an effort to coordinate and fill orders for available resources.

- Potential for significant incidents emerging in multiple GA’s indicates that resource demands will continue or increase.

Preparedness Level 5

National mobilization is heavily committed and measures need to be taken to support GA's. Active GA's must take emergency measures to sustain incident operations.

- Full commitment of national resources is ongoing.

- Resource orders filled at NICC by specifically coordinating requests with GACCs as resources become available.

- Potential for emerging significant wildland fires is high and expected to remain high in multiple geographic areas. National Preparedness Levels

Obtained on June 3, 2020 from https://www.nifc.gov/fireInfo/fireinfo_prepLevels.html

 

Space X Dragon launch and docking with International Space Station.

What can I say, I am a child of the 60s who grew up with manned flights in earth orbit and then to the moon. Enjoy these two videos. The video of the launch, from CNN, is a little over 11 minutes, the video of the docking with the space station is about two minutes. For more on this mission see this webpage from NASA.

direct link to video

direct link to video

Reflections on 10 Tanker Air Carrier's DC-10 tankers

Direct link to video on Youtube

Direct link to video on Youtube

If you are like me and you follow wildfires, for example those in the western United States of in Australia, than you have probably seen videos, similar to those I have embedded here,  of a DC-10 tanker working a wildfire. Carrying up to 9,400 gallons of retardant, they can do a lot of good to help wildland firefighters on the ground. Whether a DC-10 tanker makes one drop or multiple drops, they can do a lot of good. I have never seen a DC-10 tanker drop in person, so to speak, but I have seen them on live stream, it is truly awesome to when the drop either a full or partial load.

10 Tanker Air Carrier has a fleet of four DC-10-30 tankers. I am sure that some of you already know that these DC-10's used to be commercial airliners before they were acquired by 10 Tanker Air Carrier and converted for use as tankers (I got the specs and other information on the DC-10 tankers from 10 Tanker Air Carrier's DC-10 Fact Sheet where you may go for more information). 

The four DC-10 tankers are:

• Tanker-910 N612X
• Tanker-911 N17085
• Tanker-912 N522AX
• Tanker-914 N603AX

A crew of three flies the DC-10: pilot in command, second in command, and a flight engineer. A maintenance crew of seven follows the DC-10 with trailers to their assignments. 

Mission Specs:

• cruise speed of 300 to 350 knots to the fire.
• drop speed is 140 knots.
• going back to tanker base to load and return, 380 knots.

Bill Gabbert of Fire Aviation provided an update on the 2020 US Forest Service Large Tanker Contracts on May 2nd. According to Bill's post 10 Tanker Air Carrier will have two DC-10s on this contract. These contracts may change during the fire season, and I expect that Bill will provide updates on Fire Aviation. 

Coulson-Unical CU-47 and UH-60 Helicopters

Last March I noted when Bill Gabbert of Fire Aviation wrote about a partnership between Coulson and Unical Air, called Coulson-Unical. This partnership will add several UH-60 and CH-47 helicopters to Coulson's fleet of firefighting helicopters. Bill wrote about Coulson-Unical in a March 2019 post on Fire Aviation where he had this to say about the plans for the plans for the UH-60 and the CH-47 helicopters:

The capabilities of the helicopters will include night-vision, IFR navigation, and hover filling. At least some of the newly acquired CH-47s and UH-60s will be outfitted with RADS internal tanks. The basic design of the RADS was created by Aero Union decades ago and features steep slopes on the sides when space allows, to facilitate enough head pressure at the bottom to ensure quick and constant flow. The technology used will enable automated target drops for the night vision goggle firefighting program and will have the capability to adjust flow rates based on speed and altitude. A Coulson helicopter that has been certified in Australia for night drops has been used on a regular basis for the last several months during the country’s 2018-2019 bushfire season.

Bill interviewed Coulson Vice President Britt Coulson about the Coulson-Unical partnership in March 2019. You might want to take the three plus minutes to watch the video and learn about these helicopters.

Direct link to Youtube video by Bill Gabbert of Wildfire Today

By August 2019, Coulson-Unical had converted a UH-60 Blackhawk and it was spotted at McClellan in California, see Bill's August 2019 Fire Aviation post for more details. 

Coulson has a nice Facebook page (go here) where they share photos and videos of their aircraft. On May 8th, Coulson posted some photos and a video (the first comment) of their converted CH-47, now known as a CU-47. Then on May 25th, they posted four photos of their new UH-60 Blackhawks. 

I was especially interested in Bill's reporting on the Coulson-Unical partnership and the purchase and planned conversion of CH-47 helicopters because I learned about the capabilities of the CH-47 from a friend of mine. I have actually seen a military CH-47 in the air while one of my pilot friends was taking me flying. Even from a distance of about five plus miles, I was impressed by its size. 

So, when I heard from Mike Archer's Wildfire News of the Day about the Vertical Magazine article about the new CU-47, a recently converted CH-47 by Coulson-Unical I was very interested and saw the May 26th Vertical Magazine article, "Coulson's CU-47 Ready for fire fight" This same article is in the May 22nd issue of Skies Magazine. The author of the article, Howard Slutsken, writes about this conversion, here is an excerpt:

In early March, the first Coulson-Unical CU-47 was flown from the company’s Port Alberni, B.C., base to the Aerial Firefighting North American 2020 conference in Sacramento, Calif.

Featuring a 3,000 gallon roll-on/roll-off internal tank and an advanced Garmin avionics suite, up to 12 CH-47Ds will be converted into next-generation heli-tankers, in a partnership with Unical Aviation that was announced a year ago.

“Unical provides us with the aircraft and a vast supply of parts,” explained Britt Coulson, president and COO, in an interview with Skies.

“They bought the entire Canadian Forces CH-47 parts inventory and were the largest purchaser of CH-47Ds from the U.S. Army.”

The twin-rotor Chinook is well known for its speed, size and payload. While the helicopter is often deployed on fire attack missions carrying a water bucket as an external load, Coulson wanted to give the CU-47 more flexibility and capability.

Slutsken's article on Vertical Magazine/Skies Magazine is freely available as I write this. I don't always know how long such articles will be freely available. 

Memorial Day 2020

I want to take a time out today and pause to remember all those who died serving your country. I remember the families that you left behind.


Direct link to video on Youtube

Women in wildland firefighting: Smokejumping

I have made some posts recently where I have shared some videos on smokejumping as well as offering some videos and my own reflections on the DC-3's long service as a jumpship. I think it only appropriate to share this short 2018 video on Smokejumper Naomi Mills. Enjoy.

Edited on March 29, 2021. The video that I posted here is no longer available. I am sorry, that happens sometimes.

2020 New Jersey wildfire season: May 19 wildfire activity & enhanced fire danger

May 20th, 5:04 PM

The NJ Forest Fire Service Section B10 webpage is reporting that as of this morning the Big Timber Fire has burned 2,107 acres after burnout operations and was at 95% containment


May 20th, 10:10 AM

I understand from a couple of knowledgeable friends who keep me in the loop about wildfires here in New Jersey that there is a major wildfire currently burning in the Winslow Wildlife Management Area in Winslow Township (Camden County). The Big Timber Fire was reported about 1:30 pm yesterday by NJ Forest Fire Service Fire Towers. High winds yesterday exacerbated firefighting efforts. NJFFS Section C6 is working the fire, conducting burn out operations. No structures are threatened and no evacuations have been ordered. As I write this, the fire has burned about 750 acres. NJFFS Section B10 is currently reporting on the fire on their webpage. ABC6 in Philadelphia is reporting on this fire with a video, last updated about 8 AM this morning. I will update this post later as conditions change. Bill Gabbert of Wildfire Today did is usual outstanding job on reporting on this fire, known as the Big Timber Fire, in his article of May 19, 2020.

My friend also told me that yesterday (May 19th) was a busy day for the NJFFS. I know no other details at the moment.

For the second day in a row, the NWS Mt. Holly has issued a Special Weather Statement for enhanced fire danger. I have copied today's Special Weather Statement below.

Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Mount Holly NJ
320 AM EDT Wed May 20 2020

DEZ001-MDZ008-012-NJZ001-007>010-012-013-015>023-027-201700-
New Castle-Cecil-Kent MD-Sussex-Warren-Morris-Hunterdon-Somerset-
Middlesex-Western Monmouth-Mercer-Salem-Gloucester-Camden-
Northwestern Burlington-Ocean-Cumberland-Atlantic-Cape May-
Southeastern Burlington-
Including the cities of Wilmington, Elkton, Chestertown, Newton,
Washington, Morristown, Flemington, Somerville, New Brunswick,
Freehold, Trenton, Pennsville, Glassboro, Camden, Cherry Hill,
Moorestown, Mount Holly, Jackson, Millville, Hammonton,
Cape May Court House, and Wharton State Forest
320 AM EDT Wed May 20 2020

...ENHANCED RISK OF WILDFIRE SPREAD TODAY...

Low relative humidity, gusty easterly winds, and dry fine fuels
will create and elevated risk for the spread of wildfires today
through early this evening across much of New Jersey and far
northern Delmarva.

For more information about wildfire danger, burn restrictions and
wildfire prevention and education please visit your state
forestry or environmental protection website.

$$

MPS

2020 New Jersey wildfire season: May17th wildfire activity

Thanks to a friend, I know of two wildfires that burned in New Jersey yesterday. These are just the wildfires that I know about, I suspect that there may be other smaller wildfires that I do not know about.

Roosevelt 99 Fire: first reported early Sunday morning, May 17th, in Manchester Township, Ocean County (NJ Forest Fire Service Section B5). Structures were near by and were not threatened. Ninety-nine acres were burned after firing operations, the fire was reported to be 100% contained at about 6PM on May 17th. See this post from the NJFFS Section B10 Facebook Page

Mt. Tammany Fire: first reported Sunday afternoon, May 17th, on Mt. Tammany in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area in Warren County NJ, burning about 1 acre near the junction of two popular trails on Mt. Tammany (see this Facebook post from the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. This small wildfire is near the area burned in the 80 acre Rock Face Fire on February 23, 2020. Later on May 17th, the Mt. Tammany fire was still reported to have burned about 1 acre and was at 90% containment. A NJFFS helicopter made bucket drops to aid the ground crews. See this article from Lehigh Valley Live and a second Facebook post (4:30 PM on May 17th) from the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Crews from the NJFFS and the National Park Service fought this fire.

Thanks to the wildland fire crews from the NJ Forest Fire Service and the National Park Service for your work fighting these wildfires. Nice job.

2019 wildfire season: salmon helirappellers

While I have been considering other types of aerial wildland firefighting operations, it seems only appropriate that I share this short highlight video from the Salmon Helirappellers, based in Salmon Idaho. Helirappellers are specially trained to rappel from helicopters to remote locations to fight wildfires, they are an initial attack resource.

The Salmon Helirappellers have a nice photo gallery page with photos and additional videos (including a nice video on helirappelling training) that you may be interested in. According to their who we are page they have two type II helicopters used to deliver helirappelling firefighters and one type III helicopter.


Direct link to Youtube video from Salmon Helirappellers

2020 New Jersey wildfire season (May 13th update)

It is mid-May and while I have no official word about the dates of the spring wildfire season in New Jersey, nor do I have any figures on the number of fires and acreage burned to date, this is around the time of year when the spring wildfire season ends here in New Jersey. I don't take the dates all that seriously, because all it takes is a period of very dry weather to change things. What I can say, and this is by no means "official" is that I understand that in many parts of New Jersey there was been rain every two to four days which may have put on things fire wise. I do know a little about rainfall in part of New Jersey (up north) because I record rainfall in a gage. Since the end of March, I have recorded some rain in my gage every two to four days.

I only know of one major wildfire in New Jersey since the beginning of April, that is the Split Ditch Fire that burned 1,516 acres in early April. I know of some smaller fires, including the Rock Face Fire that while 80 acres in size, made local news because it burned in difficult to access terrain in the Delaware Water Gap off of Interstate 80. I am pretty sure that there have been other smaller wildfire activity across the state of varying acreage.

While perhaps the spring wildfire season in New Jersey has not been as newsworthy as some past spring wildfire season in New Jersey, I am assured and thankful that the great crews of the New Jersey State Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) along with mutual aid responders have been and continue to be ready to keep us safe in New Jersey. Thank-you all NJFFS wildland firefighters for always being ready to fight wildfires to keep us in New Jersey safe.

About SEATS from a SEAT (Air Tractor) Fire Boss pilot

One of the very great pleasures that I have had over the last few weeks is that I have been doing a great deal of reading, thinking, and reflecting about aerial wildland firefighting. I love learning more about airtankers and helicopters and the pilot's who fly these magnificent aircraft. Enjoy this video from Air Tractor where you will hear Mike Young, Assistant Chief Pilot of Air Spray. At the time this video was produced, Mike was in charge of Air Spray's SEAT operations in Chico, CA.




Direct link to video from Air Tractor on Youtube

Reflections on the DC-3 (smokejumpers): part 2 of 2

Among the many types of service (see my May 6th article) that you and your military sisters have done is that of a smokejumper aircraft aka a jump ship. I believe that your first service as a jump ship was around the time that World War II ended. The last of your kind to serve as a jump ship in the United States was retired in 2015. That is about 70 years of service. I believe that it was sometime in the very early 1990s that the last two of you owned by the U.S. Forest Service had your round piston engines removed to be converted to a turbo prop along with other renovations. You were then sometimes referred to as a BT-67 after Basler Turbo Conversions, the company that did the conversion.

I wish that I knew how many of your kind flew for the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management or one of their contractors, but I do not. I think that the numbers may not really matter. What matters is that many of you flew smokejumpers. You served long and well, flying what could be tens of thousands of smokejumpers and their cargo to remote wildfires, mostly in the western U.S. and Canada. That is, many remote wildfires that thanks to you and other jump ships smokejumpers could reach the fire in a matter of hours as opposed to what may have been a day long hike in carrying heavy fire gear and rations.

It is my very great loss that I have not gotten to know you better in your service as a jump ship. Nonetheless, I love you and you have a special place in my heart. While other types of jump ships are flying the smokejumpers, you have a special place in my heart. Thank-you for your service.

In this 2005 video below at about 1:45 you will hear smokejumper Skodt Jones talk about the DC-3.


Direct link to video on Youtube


Direct link to video on Youtube

Reflections on the DC-3 (part 1 of 2)

This is the first of a two part reflection piece about the Douglas DC-3 aircraft. In part 2 to post on May 8th, I will focus on her service as a smokejumping aircraft.

The other day I took a look at the different types of air tankers and Helicopters that I have written about over the past four to five months. I have covered many, but not all, of the current and past air tankers and Helicopters. I was wondering what aircraft involved in wildland firefighting that I could write about next when I thought that I should try to write about some of the current and past smokejumping aircraft. I believe but am not certain that there are at least three smokejumper aircraft currently flying to choose from, the DeHavilland Twin Otter, the the Shorts Sherpa, and the Dornier 228. Rom my reading I heard of one of the variants of the Beech 18. And then there is the Douglas DC-3. I am starting with the Douglas DC-3, I will get to her in a moment. I hope that I will be able to write about the other smokejumping  aircraft in the future I have had some more time to scour the internet for information and to be sure that what I write will not be incorrect.

Before I get to the DC-3's service as a smokejumper aircraft, I want to pause and acknowledge that the DC-3 is among my favorite airplanes. I have seen her or her military cousins hanging on display in museums. but never up close and personal. Her military versions, the U.S. Army C-47, the U.S. Navy R4D, and the British Royal Air Force Dakota saw service as a military transport during and after World War II. Her civilian version, the DC-3 carried passengers on commercial flights (see this article from the Smithsonian Magazine).

Here are some articles that I wrote where you may learn a little more about the DC-3:

• 75th anniversary of the DC-3 (December 17, 2010)
• About the DC-3 
• DC-3 engine sound 
• Virtual tour of the DC-3 courtesy of the MAAM

I close with some videos about the DC-3/C-47.


The Douglas C-47 Military Transport from SleepingDogTV on Vimeo.


Direct link to video from the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum on Youtube 


Direct link to video from the Smithsonian Channel on Youtube

continued reflection for wildland firefighters during a pandemic

I wrote on March 30th that I am not going to write about the Covid-19 pandemic, this still holds true as I write this. However, as wildfire season ramps up in other parts of the country and we in New Jersey have a week or so more to go in our spring wildfire season, I continue to hold all of you who engage in wildland firefighting in any capacity in my daily meditations. This is nothing new as in the eleven years that I have writing this blog on aerial wildland firefighting hardly a day has passed when I did not think of all of you. What has changed for me at least is that I figure that there are two ways I can help you. One is to shelter-in-place, as I continue to do. The second and more to the point of this blog is to keep you in my daily meditations. So, to all of you who are in the wildland firefighting community in any capacity. this post is for you. I know enough to know that there are protocols being put in place for wildland firefighting during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Those of you who are interested in this topic will find Bill Gabbert's reporting on Covid-19 on Wildfire Today to be good reading. Bill is doing is usual excellent job of reporting and he has written a great deal about Covid-19 over the last month. It was Bill's reporting that provided some motivation for this post. Highlights include but are not limited to:

• his interview with the Forest Service about changes in wildland firefighting during the pandemic (April 11th)
• US Forest Service, NW Region, Covid-19 protocols (April 15th)
• Covid-19 protocols issued by the National Geographic Area eastern region (April 16th)
• Simulation for managing Covid-19 during wildfires (May 2nd)

Thank-you all wildland firefighters (ground based and in the air) and all support personnel for keeping us safe from wildfires.


Direct link to video on youtube

2019 wildfire season: Wyoming Hotshots

Enjoy this 2019 season highlight video from the Wyoming Hotshots.


Direct link to video on Youtube