CommunityEditor
07-08-2008, 06:50 PM
Airmen from the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve continued to battle massive wildfires that have burned hundreds of square miles in California since late June, the Air Force announced Tuesday.
The 302nd Air Expeditionary Group has been flying aerial firefighting support missions since June 26, performing 746 airdrops and delivering about 850,000 gallons of fire retardant as of Monday, according to an Air Force news release.
The 302nd consists of three Guard units — the 145th Airlift Wing from Charlotte, N.C.; the 146th Airlift Wing from Channel Islands, Calif.; and the 153rd Airlift Wing from Cheyenne, Wyo. — and one Air Force Reserve unit, the 302nd Airlift Wing from Peterson Air Force Base, Colo.
The airmen are flying eight C-130s fitted with the Modular Airborne Firefighting System, which can drop up to 3,000 gallons of fire retardant per mission.
On Monday, C-130 firefighting sorties battled fires throughout the state. They flew 16 sorties and dropped 44,800 gallons of fire retardant on the Basin fire in the Los Padres National Forest near Big Sur. The same day, the aircraft flew 11 sorties and dropped more than 30,800 gallons of retardant on the Piute fire in the Sequoia National Forest.
Those are among nearly 1,800 wildfires that have charred more than 960 square miles of California in two weeks. More than 300 fires remain uncontained, according to The Associated Press. Some 100 structures statewide have been destroyed and one firefighter died of a heart attack, AP reported.
The C-130s fighting fires in Southern California reload fire retardant and refuel at Channel Islands Air National Guard Station and return to McClellan Airfield at the end of the flying day for maintenance and the next day’s launch, according to the Air Force.
The 302nd is part of a U.S. Northern Command effort to assist the U.S. Forest Service and other state and national agencies.
Article: http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2008/07/airforce_fires_070808w/
The 302nd Air Expeditionary Group has been flying aerial firefighting support missions since June 26, performing 746 airdrops and delivering about 850,000 gallons of fire retardant as of Monday, according to an Air Force news release.
The 302nd consists of three Guard units — the 145th Airlift Wing from Charlotte, N.C.; the 146th Airlift Wing from Channel Islands, Calif.; and the 153rd Airlift Wing from Cheyenne, Wyo. — and one Air Force Reserve unit, the 302nd Airlift Wing from Peterson Air Force Base, Colo.
The airmen are flying eight C-130s fitted with the Modular Airborne Firefighting System, which can drop up to 3,000 gallons of fire retardant per mission.
On Monday, C-130 firefighting sorties battled fires throughout the state. They flew 16 sorties and dropped 44,800 gallons of fire retardant on the Basin fire in the Los Padres National Forest near Big Sur. The same day, the aircraft flew 11 sorties and dropped more than 30,800 gallons of retardant on the Piute fire in the Sequoia National Forest.
Those are among nearly 1,800 wildfires that have charred more than 960 square miles of California in two weeks. More than 300 fires remain uncontained, according to The Associated Press. Some 100 structures statewide have been destroyed and one firefighter died of a heart attack, AP reported.
The C-130s fighting fires in Southern California reload fire retardant and refuel at Channel Islands Air National Guard Station and return to McClellan Airfield at the end of the flying day for maintenance and the next day’s launch, according to the Air Force.
The 302nd is part of a U.S. Northern Command effort to assist the U.S. Forest Service and other state and national agencies.
Article: http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2008/07/airforce_fires_070808w/