France to order 16 Canadair tankers

Air Tanker 247
Air Tanker 247 scooping water at Castaic Lake December 6, 2017 . Photo by Robert Schwemmer.

The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, announced that by the end of his term in 2027 the country will have replaced their existing fleet of 12 Canadair scooping air tankers and increased the number to 16.

Mr. Macron referred to this as an “emergency air rearmament” after an extremely busy wildfire season this year. He said there would be an investment of 250 million euros for an “unprecedented order” from Canadair. They also plan to acquire two heavy helicopters.

The Head of State warned that this “exceptional summer” “may not be so so” in the future due to climate change, during a tribute ceremony in the village hall of the ‘Élysée, to those involved in the fight against fire.

“For many of you, this summer was a season in hell”, “hell of flames, fatigue, desolation”, he said.

De Havilland Aircraft has purchased the rights to Canadairs, which have not been built for years, although some older aircraft have been upgraded to CL-415T and CL-415 EAF. The company announced in September they would be building a large manufacturing facility east of Calgary, Alberta. They expect to employ 1,500 workers to produce at least three lines of aircraft — DHC-515 (a modernized and upgraded CL-415), DHC-6 Twin Otter, and Dash 8-400 (Q400).

The DHC-515, first teased in 2018, will be assembled in Calgary with deliveries beginning by the middle of the decade.

On September 21 Gérald Moussa Darmanin, French Minister of the Interior, said, “We want to increase the number of Canadair [water scooping air tankers] in our own fleet from twelve to sixteen. But the problem is not to buy them, it is to produce them. Today there are no longer any factories that do so.”

Mr. Darmanin did not mention at that time they intended to replace the existing 12 water scoopers.

France is also in the process of replacing their S-2 air tankers with six Dash 8-400 (Q400) air tankers.

CL-415 scooping air tanker
CL-415 scooping air tanker supports a firing operation on the Calf Canyon & Hermits Peak Fire, New Mexico. May, 2022. IMT photo.

European countries intend to purchase 22 twin-engine scooping air tankers

DHC-515
DHC-515. Image by De Havilland Aircraft of Canada.

As drought and unprecedented heat waves result in a surge of wildfires in Western Europe, attention is drawn to the resources available to assist firefighters, especially fixed wing aircraft.

The European Union budgeted about 900 million euros in 2021 for civil protection, preventing and responding to crises, and expects that amount to increase.

Currently the EU coordinates and funds the deployment of 12 fixed wing firefighting airplanes and one helicopter pooled by EU countries. Reuters reports that as assistance is expected to rise due to climate change and more frequent wildfires, the EU plans to purchase crisis-response aircraft, EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic said.

From Reuters:

“These planes will be technically bought by the member states but they will be 100% financed by the European Union,” said Lenarcic.

Lenarcic declined to name the companies involved as contracts have not yet been signed, but said plans are to relaunch production of amphibious planes that scoop up water to douse fires.

In a March 31, 2022 press release, De Havilland Aircraft of Canada announced a new twin-engine water scooping aircraft, the DHC-515, formerly known as CL-515. The CL-515 was first teased in December 2018, but the actual production has been delayed.

De Havilland wrote that they “launched the De Havilland DHC-515 Firefighter program, which will involve negotiating contracts with our European customers and ramping up for production,” said Brian Chafe, Chief Executive Officer of De Havilland Canada.

“European customers have signed letters of intent to purchase the first 22 aircraft pending the positive outcome of government-to-government negotiations through the Government of Canada’s contracting agency, the Canadian Commercial Corporation,” the announcement read. “De Havilland Canada expects first deliveries of the DHC-515 by the middle of the decade, with deliveries of additional aircraft to begin at the end of the decade, providing other customers the opportunity to renew existing fleets or proceed with new acquisition opportunities at that time.

“The final assembly of the aircraft will take place in Calgary, Alberta where work on the CL-215 and CL- 415 aircraft currently takes place. It is anticipated that more than 500 people will need to be recruited over the coming years to successfully deliver this program.”

Meanwhile there may be disagreement in Portugal about which type of firefighting airplane to purchase. The Portugal Resident reports that the Council of Ministers approved a resolution to purchase 12 helicopters and two “heavy duty” amphibian airplanes. The report is that the country intends to spend a total of €60 million to buy two CL-415s which are no longer in production. They are most likely looking at the soon to be manufactured DCH-515.

The Council of Ministers’ resolution that approved the purchase of the two scoopers, according to the Portugal Resident, “chose to finance the operation with PRR money coming from Brussels, and from money available through the European Mechanism for Civil Protection.”

The Portugal Resident wrote that João Marques, president of the association of Portuguese Volunteer Firefighters, recommends that they spend the money instead on Fire Boss single engine scooping air tankers that he said cost about €3 million each.

Thanks and a tip of the hat go out to Gerald.

News from the Aerial Firefighting Conference in Sacramento

aerial firefighting Conference Keynotes MCC
Keynote addresses. Tangent Link photo.

The two-day Aerial Firefighting North America conference just wrapped up at Sacramento McClellan Airport in Sacramento. It began Tuesday with a series of keynote and welcoming addresses delivered by Chief Thom Porter, Director of CAL FIRE, Brian S. Marshal, State Fire and Rescue Chief and Director of the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, followed by Jeffrey Rupert, Director of the Office of Wildland Fire in the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Conair confirmed at the conference that they expect to open the world’s first Aerial Firefighting Training and Tactics Centre early this spring. It will have five fully Networked Flight Training Devices that are reconfigurable to simulate the cockpit and flight dynamics for eight aircraft platforms performing different roles during an aerial firefighting mission.

Viking Air Limited introduced the Canadair CL-515 First Responder, a new production multi-mission scooping amphibian and purpose-built aerial firefighting aircraft.

Coulson Aviation announced they have installed a large capacity internal helicopter tank in a CH47 Chinook. It will be able to carry up to 3,000 gallons.

Columbia Helicopters introduced a Type 1 multi-mission Standard Transport Category helicopter – the Columbia Model 234 LR Chinook. It can be configured to carry up to 19 passengers, a 2,800 gallon internal tank, a 2,600 gallon bucket, or internal and external cargo.

Trotter Controls recorded a video tour of some of the exhibits at the conference.