Fred Johnson sent us this video he shot of air tankers dropping on a fire south of Winnemucca, Nevada July 3, 2013. The very well done video includes a BAe-146, a Single Engine Air Tanker, and a P2V. Thanks Fred!
Video of air tankers near Winnemucca
- Bill Gabbert
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Yes, thanks for sharing the video. Can the BAe 146 select coverage levels for various fuel types and make multiple drops during a single sortie?
Johnny I have seen video of the BAe making two drops on the same pass.
And I know I have seen information that they can select coverage levels. I would suspect it’s a requirement of the contracts.
The more video I see, the more I am impressed with the BAe-146/RJ-85 as a platform. I think I have heard that props have more ability to add power quickly if things deteriorate, but these seem to be able to maneuver well.
T-40 can select one, two, three, or four tubes/valves. And it can divide up the volume in different ways. It flows out the tubes by gravity rather than drops out from a tank, so you can see that at the end of the drop there is a trail off like the old MAFFs used to have – at about 33 seconds. The aircraft flies well and the engines spool up just fine. You have to be more careful with the radial engines than with jets.
ktoger… do you have personal experience? Are you sure all of that is true?
Now I am not knocking these “new” beautiful and effective whiz-bang bombers so here is another link but to the “golden age” of retardant bombers. Some of you were ground pounders back in the 60’s. Right? Remember these beauties? Never forget them.
The only bombers missing in this clip from my fire days repertoire is the TBM and C119. We all probably witnessed some pretty incredible drops from these vintage bombers…. I think it was long before there were “modern day constraints” placed on the flight crews. I’ll swear there were some real cowboys but they knew what they were doing and they knew their aircraft and boy, they could fly!
I have several classic memories but one…. watching a B17 on approach and listening to its engines popping away as it descends from over 12,000’ off an alpine ridge to drop on the Lincoln Lake Fire at 11,500’…. that is an indelible and incredible sensory memory! I hope you have at least a few, too! Modern or not-so-modern, aerial firefighting really is something. Isn’t it! [Those timberline trees that burned remain standing 40 years later only now they are sometimes referred to as the ghost forest.]
LR
THANKS for that, Mr.Ranger, that is one awesome old video.
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