San Diego hosts firefighting conference

Over 350 delegates from 20 countries attended the North American Aerial Firefighting Conference organized by Tangent Link on 22–23 March 2022 in San Diego, California. All the presenters acknowledged the fact that the fire season is getting longer and wildland fires are getting more intense. In 2021, over seven million acres burned in the US alone. Attendees from other countries such as Canada, Australia, Greece, and South America stated the same situation is found in their countries.

A common theme among the lecturers is the increasing importance of aggressive initial attack (IA), the act of sending a large force of aerial firefighting assets as soon as a fire is reported. As an example, the state of Washington has dramatically increased its IA aircraft, both fixed-wing and helicopters for the 2021 fire season. The state owns ten Bell UH-1H Huey Type II helicopters strategically place for IA. However, with an increase in funding, an additional 25 exclusive use contract fixed-wing air tankers and helicopters were used for IA in 2021. As a result, 94 per cent of all wildland fires in Washington State were kept under ten acres in size.

Cal Fire, the state fire agency for California, made a presentation on its new Sikorsky S-70i Firehawks. These helicopters can carry up to 1,000 gallons of water, three times the amount of the previous Bell UH-1H Hueys. They are also almost 50 per cent faster than the old helicopters. This will allow more water to be dropped much more rapidly on new fires when they are small and keep them from growing. The Firehawks will also be used for fighting fires at night.

Cal Fire, the state fire agency for California, made a presentation on its new Sikorsky S-70i Firehawks. These helicopters can carry up to 1,000 gallons of water, three times the amount of the previous Bell UH-1H Hueys. They are also almost 50 per cent faster than the old helicopters. This will allow more water to be dropped much more rapidly on new fires when they are small and keep them from growing. The Firehawks will also be used for fighting fires at night.

An excellent panel discussion on pilot hiring, training, and retention was presented. With an increase in the wildland fire threat around the world, both fixed-wing and helicopter private contractors are seeing an increase in business. In addition, the move to 24-hour operations calls for an increase in the number of pilots needed. In the US, contractors are hoping for longer contracts, up to ten years, so they can plan for the future acquisition of both aircraft and personnel. Not only is steady work important for hiring and retention, it allows for full-time employment with commensurate pay, benefits, and quality of work life. On the training side, several companies have developed and are developing specialized flight simulators to speed up the time needed to train pilots and reduce the cost.

In addition, the conference offered several presentations on some of the new generation of fixed-wing air tankers and what is coming in the future. The use of drones and unmanned aerial systems was also discussed. Over 50 companies had displays in the exhibit hall with time between presentations to explore what the industry has to offer to firefighting agencies.