Super Tanker AT-944 Wheels Down At McClellan Airfield Today #CAFire

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Super Tanker AT-944 Wheels Down At McClellan Airfield Today #CAFire

Global Supertaker Services 747 AT-944 Wheels Down At McClellan Airfield Today

Air tanker 944 Just rolled into McClellan.

now at Cal Fire Hangar.
Photo credit: Melvin Clouser

The 747 SuperTanker arrived at McClellan Air Field in Sacramento today from Marana, Arizona after a gorgeous new paint job. Bob Soelberg, Senior VP and Program Manager of Global Supertaker, said the retardant delivery system still needs a few tweaks before it can actually drop water or retardant, but they hope to have it ready to fight fire later this year.

The Air Tanker will be on static display for attendees the Aerial Firefighting conference until Wednesday, March 23. [more below]

McClellan Jet Services know McClellan Airfield houses a fire retardant reload base that gets activated when there is a great enough need and a CAL FIRE and USFS firefighting aircraft base

The wildfire season in North America has been a challenging one for all concerned. According to the National Interagency Fire Centre, 6,224,545 acres had been burned by a total of 37,894 fires by 8th August, the second highest in the last decade with the fire season still at National Preparedness Level 4, the second highest level.

It is against this backdrop that the 13th Aerial Firefighting International conference has been officially announced by Tangent Link and will take place during March 2016, returning to its recent US home of Sacramento in California.

Tangent Link has a long-standing commitment to the international aerial firefighting community in the way it has continually brought together governing bodies, institutions and associations, as well as operators and those who are tasked with overcoming wildfires.

Over the two days of conference in March 2016, delegates will hear from several invited US Senators and international aerial firefighting specialists.

The session programme will include presentations on the following issues: civil and military firefighting operations, both nationally and globally; an examination of the latest developments in night vision techniques and the increasing use of unmanned systems; together with an examine of future technologies.

At the conference dinner, The Walt Darran International Aerial Firefighting Award will be presented to recognise the contribution of an individual or organisation who have been judged by a panel of experts to have made a significant contribution to aerial firefighting.

There will be external live demonstrations of aircraft and fire fighting equipment, together with static displays.

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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.

CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States. CDF - CAL FIRE Firefighters answer the call more than 300,000 times a year. CAL FIRE Firefighters make up the fire department for 30 of our 58 counties in California and more than 100 local communities. We serve as the incident command during many of California’s most serious disasters. CAL FIRE Firefighters respond to many various types and forms of calls ranging from structural fires, to auto accidents, to earthquakes, to floods, to the spilling of hazardous materials, to every conceivable disaster; CAL FIRE answer's the calls. CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States . CAL FIRE firefighters protect 33 million acres of State Responsibility Area (SRA). We have over 4,000 members within CAL FIRE and CAL FIRE is associated with the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).

CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Tuesday, March 22, 2016