Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Watch a water bomber plane drop its load on a truck fire in remote Canada

Has Shock and Awe ever been used in firefighting? Probably not, as fires aren't really bothered by the psychological effects implicit in Shock and Awe warfare. But if any form of firefighting qualified for that well known military doctrine, it'd be aerial firefighting, as proven by this video of what looks like a Canadair CL-215 (we could be wrong, tell us in the comments) tackling a vehicle fire in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

As CarScoops points out, using a water bomber to put out a vehicle fire is like bringing a Howitzer to a knife fight, but due to the extremely isolated location of the accident authorities were concerned that a firetruck couldn't get to the scene in time to contain the blaze. Hence the airplane. The accident, involving a grader and semi truck didn't result in any fatalities, but it did close the remote Trans-Labrador Highway for some time.


http://www.autoblog.com/2013/08/12/w...k-fire-canada/

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Or as in this scenario, thousands of gallons of water is worth more than a forest fire...

Lil4X

Yikes! that's "danger close" with water. Great solution and a fantastic "bombing" run, a nice compensation for drift, putting the water exactly on target!

mmarshall

Prop-driven planes with straight wings are generally more preferable for this role than swept-wing jets because their engines and wings are more efficient at low altitudes and slower speeds. Jets take longer to respond to throttle-input and spool up power than piston engines, and swept-back wings, even with dual-edge flaps, often don't produc as much lift at low speeds.

One often sees World War II and 1950s-vintage bombers/transports still used for this role, simply because they incorporate the piston-engine/straight-wing concept and, at the same time, were designed to carry large bomb or cargo loads.....so their bomb bays and cargo areas can be filled with water or fire-retardant instead.

Unfortunately, the number of aircraft-mechanic shops today (and certified technicians) that can still work on those old planes and overhaul radial piston engines is rapidly diminishing.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

right on the target!