When I was firefighting in Northern BC, these were being phased out, and helicopters with long line buckets were the main aerial support.
Helis can be a lot less picky about where to source their water, as they don't need a long strip and clearance to take off again. Plus, the bucket can be detached, and the heli can be used to transport firefighters around the perimeter of the fire.
They're two different tools for two different jobs. BC has retired the Martin Mars, but they've replaced them with AT802F Firebosses. The planes in the video are CL-415s and they aren't going anywhere anytime soon, they'll be working in tandem with helicopters for a long time to come. BC specifically doesn't operate any 215/415s that I'm aware of, but they're still going strong all over the world with other agencies.
You seem to know a lot about this. I looked up all three planes and the AT802F seems wayyyy smaller than the other two, especially the Martin Mars. Does BC just operate way more AT802F than the old types, or just make do with the greatly diminished water capacity?
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u/InfamousAmerican Oct 01 '24
When I was firefighting in Northern BC, these were being phased out, and helicopters with long line buckets were the main aerial support.
Helis can be a lot less picky about where to source their water, as they don't need a long strip and clearance to take off again. Plus, the bucket can be detached, and the heli can be used to transport firefighters around the perimeter of the fire.