Time to Crank Up Aerial Firefighters

June 1, 2006

Time to Crank Up Aerial Firefighters: Airmen of Air Force Reserve Command’s 302nd Airlift Wing at Peterson AFB, Colo., have to recertify their ability to conduct modular airborne fire fighting system missions to suppress wild fires each year—and the season is coming up. The AFRC crews only get the call if all civilian aircraft are exhausted, but they have to remain sharp. The AFRC aircrews fly eight sorties, which include 16 dry passes over drop areas and eight wet passes, said Maj. Mark Steward, the 302nd chief of safety. Members of the units are very familiar with the season, having fought numerous fires since taking over the Reserve portion of the MAFFS mission in 1993.

Related Content

Why USAF Wants to Cut ISR Operations in Fiscal 2022

June 23, 2021
The plan to cut back on one of the most requested military missions, the Air Force’s intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations, to reinvest into future capabilities is emblematic of the thinking behind the Pentagon’s new budget request, and of the uphill fight Defense Department leaders have on Capitol Hill. The…

Austin: GBSD’s Future Will Depend on New Nuclear Posture Review

June 23, 2021
The Pentagon is asking for about $1.1 billion to fund the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent program as some lawmakers have raised concerns about the need for the system, and top Defense Department leaders said June 23 that its future will be dependent on a new review of the military’s nuclear…

USAF Approves Moving F-22 Training to Langley Following Environmental Study

June 23, 2021
The Air Force’s training unit for the F-22 is one step closer to a permanent home, as the service approved Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va., as the new location for the unit following the completion of an environmental impact study. But while the study and approval mark a crucial step in…

Guard Training, Ops May Halt Without Refund for Capitol Defense

June 23, 2021
The National Guard will sharply cut back on training and operations for the rest of the fiscal year if it isn't refunded the $521 million it spent responding to the Jan. 6 insurrection and providing extended security at the the Capitol, National Guard Bureau head Gen. Daniel R. Hokanson said…

Afghanistan Withdrawal Continues as Taliban Makes Gains

June 22, 2021
The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan continues on pace, and though Taliban violence has increased—with the group taking more districts from the Kabul-based government—there are no plans to slow the drawdown yet. U.S. Central Command said June 22 that more than 50 percent of the withdrawal had been completed as of…

Which Wings Would Lose A-10s Under USAF Plan

June 22, 2021
The Air Force’s plan to cut 42 A-10 Warthogs in fiscal 2022 targets Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., and the Indiana Air National Guard, but while those wings would lose Warthogs, they would pick up new missions. The Air Force wants to cut the Warthog fleet by 22 percent, from…

Space War, Like the Cold War, Is All Risk, No Reward

June 22, 2021
War in space will take on aspects of the Cold War in the future, as space powers vie for supremacy but seek to avoid the kind of kinetic warfare that could wipe out satellite constellations and undermine global activity on Earth. Two officials with the Air Force Research Laboratory shared…

USAF Would ‘Greatly Value’ Congressional Boost for Sustainment, Flying Hours

June 22, 2021
Flying hours dropped in the Air Force's fiscal 2022 budget request because weapon system sustainment costs ballooned, senior Air Force officials told lawmakers June 22. They said the service would value Congress adding money to the budget to help with weapon system sustainment, which in turn would help the Air…