Strong winds whip up western Japan wildfires; 15 buildings lost

Seems like Japan needs special fire-fighting aircraft that can carry far more water for dropping than helicopters

There is a module that can be fitted into a C-130, that makes it the best fire fighting plane I have ever seen. We used to have some at an outfit I was in. They worked really well. Also very economical, compared to any other planes or helicopters I have seen for that purpose. C-130s are ubiquitous in western air forces, and can be multitasked. The fire fighting modules can be rolled in, and then rolled back out when not needed.

Seems like swings between increased rainfall and increased droughts are happening more frequently. With higher temps and droughts come higher aridity, leading to fires. There are reports of more wildfires all over the world.

I have noticed over the years that Japan is quite a windy country - much more than any other island nation I've ever been to.

There is a module that can be fitted into a C-130, that makes it the best fire fighting plane I have ever seen. We used to have some at an outfit I was in. [url=www.google.com]They[/url] worked really well. Also very economical, compared to any other planes or helicopters I have seen for that purpose. C-130s are ubiquitous in western air forces, and can be multitasked. The fire fighting modules can be rolled in, and then rolled back out when not needed.

Climate change strikes again.

Seems like Japan needs special fire-fighting aircraft that can carry far more water for dropping than helicopters

There is a module that can be fitted into a C-130, that makes it the best fire fighting plane I have ever seen. 

The Chinook you see in the headline photo can put more water on a fire in less time than any C-130 or similar sized aircraft. An S-2T can deliver 1,200 gallons of retardant. A C-130H can deliver 4,000 gallons. However for fixed wing aircraft they must return to a runway where they are refueled and loaded with retardant. Ground turn around times are typically half an hour. The flight time to and from the fire to the airport is a half hour to an hour depending on location.

A Chinook can lift 3,000 gallons in the underslung bucket, but it can refill from any lake, pond, swimming pool or an 11,000 gallon collapsable water basin that can be set up near a fire. The Chinook can make drops every 5-10 minutes and put a lot more water and retardant on a fire than any stiff winger. Refueling can be accomplished in a simple clearing from a fuel truck in two minutes max with rotors turning. The retardant tank that dumps retardant down a hose into the water bucket is re-filled during refueling. Total time on the ground can be as short as three minutes. Then you lift off, drop your bucket into that 11,000 gallon reservoir and go fight the fire. I'm an old Chinook pilot btw.

Plenty of fix modern wing fire-fighting aircraft 'scoop' up enormous amounts of water by partially landing over lakes and oceans etc.

Many were seen doing so in recent LA fires for example, FAR more water than any helicopter and FAR faster to boot

Some rainy weather is coming in a couple of days. Hopefully will help to bring this under control.

Plenty of fix modern wing fire-fighting aircraft 'scoop' up enormous amounts of water by partially landing over lakes and oceans etc.

Many were seen doing so in recent LA fires for example, FAR more water than any helicopter and FAR faster to boot

There were only two of those seaplanes in California.

They don't carry as much water as a Chinook, need a much larger body of water to scoop from which are generally farther from the fire and require a runway to land on and refuel. In terms of gallons of water and retardant on a fire per hour the helicopters are much more productive. For fighting fires inland those seaplanes are generally useless because there are so few lakes large enough for them to make a pass and scoop up water. They need quite bit of room. A helicopter can pull water from a golf course water obstacle, back yard swimming pool or an 11,000 gallon ( 45,00 liter ) tank placed in any suitable clearing minutes from the fire. The fuel truck can be there too. They don't need an airport to refuel.