World?EUR??,,????'???s Biggest Hydroseeding Machine?
This converted 747 can eject a swimming pool?EUR??,,????'???s worth of water over a fire or other trouble spot.
An aerial dogfight is shaping up as rivals duel to see who will be first to get jumbo jet water tankers aloft to fight wildfires?EUR??,,????'??+and perhaps take on more challenging tasks.
The huge airliners would be able to drop PhosCheck fire retardant and other mixtures containing grass and wildflower seeds. The big jets could even be used to decontaminate large urban areas after industrial accidents or terrorist attacks, the operators claim.
One has his hopes pegged on a converted 747 cargo aircraft. The other is banking on a retrofitted DC-10 passenger plane.
At stake are potentially lucrative government contracts to help fight brush and forest fires. The rush to get the planes in the air comes as authorities continue grounding the World War II propeller planes that for half a century have dropped water and retardant on burning hillsides and forests.
In one test, the big jet dropped a fire-retarding chemical mix, which can contain grass and wildflower seed for erosion control.
So far, Sanford Burnstein of Tulsa, Okla., has a slim lead over Delford Smith of McMinnville, Ore.
Burnstein, owner of charter aviation company Omni Air International, has sunk $15 million into converting a DC-10 into a tanker. Last week in Victorville, his plane received Federal Aviation Administration certification for water-dropping operations and is awaiting approval for firefighting use by the Interagency Airtanker Board, a federal group based in Boise, Idaho.
But Smith is close on his tail. His company, Evergreen International Aviation, has yet to receive FAA approval for the Boeing 747 he has spent $40 million modifying. But he has strong government connections: Evergreen has been known as ?EUR??,,????'??the CIA airline?EUR??,,????'?? because of its work with the federal intelligence agency.
The 747 is one of 15 jumbo jets owned by Evergreen Aviation. Spokeswoman Jordan Shultz said the tank system is designed to be removable so the plane can be returned to carrying cargo during winter months.
Omni Air International has converted a DC-10 into an aerial tanker. After a successful test, the FAA certified this aircraft for firefighting.
The pressurized tanks can drop fire retardant as well as water from between 400 and 800 feet at a speed of 161 mph. They can also spray chemicals for oil-spill containment and ?EUR??,,????'??biochemical decontamination?EUR??,,????'?? in the event of a terrorist attack, the company said.
The contenders say the huge amount of water that can be dropped at one time allows for direct fire suppression instead of the flame-slowing effect of smaller water drops. But experts say the equally huge cost of operating the planes would likely limit their use to fires that are directly threatening lives and property.
A fleet of equipped jets could limit casualties if terrorists used nuclear, chemical or biological weapons, says Evergreen International?EUR??,,????'??+sometimes referred to as ?EUR??,,????'??the CIA-airline.?EUR??,,????'??
?EUR??,,????'??The super tanker has the capability of changing the way wildfires are fought,?EUR??,,????'?? said Tony Morris, a leader of the California-based Wildfire Research Network. ?EUR??,,????'??These men have stepped to the plate and put up their own money to produce a valuable firefighting tool.?EUR??,,????'??
Others aren?EUR??,,????'???t so sure.
?EUR??,,????'??There?EUR??,,????'???s no way you could use a jumbo jet to fight a fire in a canyon. It?EUR??,,????'???s a hell of a big airplane for 12,000 gallons of water,?EUR??,,????'?? said Chuck Stewart, who observed last week?EUR??,,????'???s DC-10 demonstration.
Maybe the plane would be more at home back at Burnstein?EUR??,,????'???s Tulsa headquarters, Stewart suggested.
?EUR??,,????'??It would have been fantastic for those grass fires they had in Oklahoma and Texas.?EUR??,,????'??
Source: Los Angeles Times
