Stalled Air Tankers: For this fire season and beyond, we need to resolve to change our air tanker policies

摘要

As we enter the 2013 fire season, those concerned with the state of the U.S. federal air tanker program might wish to read an article in Aviation Week & Space Technology (Feb. 4,2013) on the state of the air tanker industry. Tided "Air Tanker Angst,"the authors warn, "The U.S. will be facing yet another fire season with a dwindling number of aging air tankers." What seems to some to be unfocused (some might even say chaotic) management at USFS Fire & Aviation appears to others to be a tightly focused obsession to award Lockheed-Martin a $2-3 billion contract for a C130J fleet at all costs, without a civilian MAFFS/ RADS Retardant Delivery System even being available to support that fleet.