View from the Top
In the summer of 2008, I spent time on fire assignments in Northern California where I was exposed to both the U.S. Forest Service's Firewatch Program and the State of California's annual fire aviation operations. Although these programs appear different on the surface, by looking a little deeper I discovered these pioneering programs share a common link.
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Both programs deserve the spotlight for their innovation and complexity. The services delivered are very different, but both are recognized as successful models of public-private partnerships.
In 1946, two former U.S. military pilots created a small airline to fly freight to Asia and the Middle East. They named their airline California Eastern Airways, and this company went on to become the foundation of DynCorp International — a public company that now provides a range of services essential not only to aviation, but also to national security, foreign policy, humanitarian operations, nation-building and peacekeeping. DynCorp has been making its mark in fire aviation since 1991, and it currently maintains two important contracts for the U.S. Forest Service and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The U.S. Forest Service program is known as Firewatch. In this operation, two former military Cobra helicopters (Bell 209) have been converted to carry high-tech sensors that can see through smoke, identify hot spots and transmit real-time information to fire managers. These national resources are based in Northern and Southern California and carry a pilot and a USFS air tactical group supervisor, who either coordinate airborne fire aviation missions or operate the Cobra's intelligence-gathering abilities. These abilities are what make the helicopter's technology so important for fire managers. The quality and detail of the bigger-picture information remitted about fire spread is impressive, serving as a new tool to support fire management decision-making.
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The Firewatch Cobras have been deployed to support incidents across the United States, as far from California as Washington and Florida. In fact, plans are currently underway to have one of these two aircraft available for routine deployments outside California as a test platform this coming fire season.
The Cobras are Vietnam-era attack helicopters that were retired from the U.S. Army in 1996 and acquired as surplus in a lot of 10 by the U.S. Forest Service. The helicopters remain the property of the U.S. Forest Service, but they are maintained and operated by DynCorp. Eight of the airframes are used for parts to keep the operational Firewatch Cobras in service. The Cobras were selected for their in-flight agility, ability to carry a two-person flight crew and their large cockpit windows that offer enhanced visibility.
High-tech infrared sensor systems make the aircraft a valuable intelligence resource for the wildland fire community. The helicopter's main sensors — located in the forward-looking infrared turret, or FLIR — consist of an infrared camera, low-light color camera, spotter scope, laser range finder and a laser pointer that can confidently create maps that, depending on conditions, are accurate up to 1 meter per square kilometer.
The FLIR system is integrated to work with a moving map program that can display street, topographic and aeronautical maps. Its infrared camera has a smoke-penetrating capability that allows it to be operated a safe distance from the incident without interfering with other aircraft operating in the area. Using technology adapted from the military's Predator system, Firewatch helicopters can fly up to 25 miles away from the location being recorded with its camera while transmitting real-time images of what is happening on selected areas of the fire. Collected data can be assembled as either live television-type feeds or as specialized infrared views of where the fire's heat may be moving beneath the ground or forest canopy. Firewatch capability is on the cutting edge, and it offers one of the greatest tactical assets to today's fire managers.
When Firewatch Cobras are on assignment, each deploys with a full-support van that provides fire managers with real-time video feeds and complete GIS mapping abilities to aid with their planning. A trained GIS technician is on-hand to develop maps of the fireground, creating point files that show the location of spot fires, drop points, dip points and possible helispots. They also can post pictures and video online, modify video as needed, email and hand-deliver maps, and create JPEG photos of the fire for fire management teams. Each support van is equipped with a large flat-screen monitor that can be set up in remote locations to view video and audio feeds directly from aircraft.
Over a fire, the Cobra may be called upon directly by on-the-ground tactical forces ranging from fire operations managers to division supervisors or even Hotshot crew supervisors. In such a scenario, the helicopter can land at a coordinated location to provide a suitcase-sized kit for the tactical ground partner. The Cobra then can rise up and fly across selected areas of hazardous fireground while sending back visual feedback via the kit. These real-time video feeds offer the opportunity for wildfire managers to see potential fire behavior and hazards in areas that would be otherwise difficult to see or access, allowing for better and safer on-the-ground, decision-making abilities.
Beyond the USFS, California's Department of Forestry and Fire Protection manages its own fire aviation program, and DynCorp provides the contracted pilots and maintenance specialists. The state of California mandates that 90% of its fires be kept below 10 acres in size, applying its 246 fire engines, 2,300 firefighters and firefighting aircraft to this task. CAL FIRE, the state's firefighting program, has 13 air attack bases, each located strategically within 20 minutes of potential fire areas.
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The CAL FIRE air fleet's size and composition is impressive. "Trackers," or S2Ts, form the backbone of the fire-bombing aviation abilities. Built during the 1960s, these Trackers were once U.S. Navy submarine hunters. They have been stripped of their military hardware and converted for bombing missions by adding an internal 1,200-gallon fire-retardant tank and belly bomb-bay doors. CAL FIRE and DynCorp operate 23 of these light air tankers together, as well as 14 OV-10 Bronco aircraft in a role similar to that which the Cobras can take on — as Air Attack platforms or specialized airborne fire aviation air traffic controllers. The Broncos have a DynCorp pilot and a qualified CAL FIRE air tactical group supervisor who coordinate airborne fire activities as needed above ongoing fire events. CAL FIRE also maintains 11 UH-1H Super Huey helicopters that can either strategically move ground crews around California as needed or drop buckets of water in support of firefighting tasks.
Managers for both programs are experienced, committed and energetic professionals who are as passionate as anyone in the fire management field. From flying above ongoing fire events gathering valuable intelligence to operating and maintaining entire aviation fleets, these pilots are on the fireline each season, helping wildland managers achieve their fire management goals.
Michael Scott Hill is a wildland firefighter and an aviation military contractor specializing in managing helicopter projects in Afghanistan. In the United States, he worked 18 summers for the U.S. Forest Service as a hot shot, rappeller and smokejumper; in Australia, he serves as a bushfire, remote area, helicopter hoist specialist.
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