![]() ![]() The clothing hanging over the hose is a set of fire-resistant gear pilots must wear while operating the unit. The 2,500-gallon water tank just behind the CH-47 Chinook helicopter’s cockpit outside the Chico Air Attack Base at the Chico Municipal Airport, in Chico, California on Wednesday, July 5, 2023. The 51-foot-long, 19-foot-tall helicopter can carry a maximum of 50,000 pounds, though it weighs 27,000 pounds with a full tank of water. The force would be enough to damage any nearby structures. “It can fill the tank in about 45 seconds,” he said, adding that pilots are able to draw from any water source - a river, a lake, a pond or even a swimming pool, though using a pool wouldn’t be practical due to the massive downdraft the propellers would cause. That blaze charred approximately 963,000 acres - slightly more than 1,500 square miles - and ended as a the largest single wildfire in the state’s history.īeing able to attack a small fire quickly, and slow its growth, is the idea behind adding the helicopter to Cal Fire’s roster.ĭylen Long, one of the Chinook’s pilots and an employee of Billings Flying Service, pointed to the helicopter’s “snorkel” system - by way of a large hose - and explained its rapid filling capability. Hawkins compared the helicopter’s ability to something Cal Fire greatly wished it had available during the 2021 Dixie Fire. It’s here on contract from Billings Flying Service of Billings, Mont., having arrived May 31 and staying for 90 to 120 days, as needed. The helicopter doesn’t belong to the state’s taxpayers. Hawkins described the helicopter - which has a tank capable of carrying 2,500 gallons of water - as “a punch able to knock down fires and keep them at or below 10 acres.”įor practical purposes, the helicopter will carry a maximum of 2,400 gallons when it also has a full tank of fuel, according to Joe Carstensen, the Chico Air Attack Base’s helicopter manager. ![]() “Any resource we can get that helps us achieve that goal is paramount.” Control panels dominate the CH-47 Chinook helicopter cockpit, near the Chico Air Attack Base at the Chico Regional Airport in Chico, California on Wednesday, July 5, 2023. “Cal Fire’s goal is to keep wildland fires at 10 acres or less, 95% of the time,” said Shem Hawkins, Chico Air Attack Base’s battalion chief and head of its air tactical group. One of those aircraft - a CH-47 Chinook helicopter - will spend its summer at the Chico Air Attack Base, on the northern edge of the Chico Regional Airport. Gavin Newsom helped make good on that principle, recently approving some $72 million in the 2023-24 budget to add 24 aircraft to state fire stations on a contract basis. CHICO - Having another firefighting tool, especially in dry, fire-prone California, is critical to keeping humans and their property safe, Cal Fire officials say.Ĭalifornia lawmakers and Gov. ![]()
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