MAFFS RELATED STORY: MAFFS crews train for mountain fire fighting scenarios

Sunday, July 1, 2012

MAFFS RELATED STORY: MAFFS crews train for mountain fire fighting scenarios

The 153rd Airlift Wing, Wyoming Air National Guard uses a Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System-equipped C-130 Hercules aircraft in support of the Waldo Canyon wild fire suppresion efforts near Colorado Springs, Colo on June 27, 2012. Four MAFFS-equipped aircraft, two from the 153rd and two from the Air Force Reserve Command's 302nd Airlift Wing flew in support of the U.S. Forest Service to fight fires in Colorado. (U.S. Air Force photo/ Staff Sgt. Stephany D. Richards)

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- When you add heat, high elevation and mountainous terrain, you have a combination that makes an already difficult mission that much tougher. The Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System trained C-130 Hercules pilots of the 731st Expeditionary Air Squadron have been dealing with these conditions since they started flying June 25, 2012 here. They are tasked with fighting fires in the Rocky Mountain area by the U.S. Forest Service.

"As far as the flying goes it's definitely the most challenging, most difficult flying we do. The terrain here is almost unprecedented," said Maj. Neil Harlow, a MAFFS-trained pilot with the 153rd Airlift Wing, Wyoming Air National Guard. "Most of the time we drop on fires around 8,000 feet in elevation. We've been dropping around 10,000-11,000 feet in elevation on some of these higher fires. The terrain, especially around Boulder [Colo.], is so steep that when we do our downhill runs were dropping 1000 to 2000 feet to get a line on the side of the mountain."

And besides the terrain, the weather is playing a role in this aerial fire-fighting mission. When it is hot the engines do not function as well as they do in colder weather, according to Maj. Richard Pantusa, a MAFFS-trained pilot with the 302nd Airlift Wing's, 731st Airlift Squadron.

This week the pilots are dealing with weather in the upper 90s. "The airplane doesn't perform as well, and there is not nearly as much power as you are used to. But these are all things we train for, things we definitely take into account and discuss both on the ground in the air when we are training for it. So we're prepared for the challenges," said Pantusa.

Last year the MAFFS-equipped C-130s from the 302nd and 153rd Airlift Wings fought fires in the flatter terrains of west Texas. And, while this year the fires are occurring in higher elevations and more mountainous terrain, the MAFFS-trained aircrews are up to the challenge.

"The good news is this is the exact same terrain we flew in during MAFFS training this year. This is one of the advantages of training in Colorado. We dropped in very similar terrain, steep, same kind of fuel, same kind of sight pictures and even a lot of the same personnel are involved in this operation," said Pantusa.

MAFFS is a self-contained aerial firefighting system owned by the U.S. Forest Service that can discharge 3,000 gallons of water or fire retardant in less than five seconds, covering an area one-quarter of a mile long by 100 feet wide. Once the load is discharged, it can be refilled in less than 12 minutes.

In addition to the 153rd and 302nd Airlift Wings, two other Air National Guard units, the 146th AW, Channel Islands, Calif., and the 145th AW, Charlotte, N.C., possess the ability to assist federal, state and local wildland fire fighting agencies and organizations with MAFFS.

The MAFFS program is a joint effort between the U.S. Forest Service and the Department of Defense.

6/29/2012 - by Tech. Sgt. Daniel Butterfield 153rd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

California Fire News 2012

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

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Sunday, July 1, 2012