THE CALIFORNIA FIRE PILOTS ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER … · the california fire pilots association newsletter the walt darran award 2016 new boeing 747-400 supertanker the deen of tankers

CFPANEWSJU

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2016

T H E C A L I F O R N I A F I R E P I L O T S A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

THE WALTDARRANAWARD2016

NEW BOEING 747-400 SUPERTANKER

THE DEEN OF TANKERS PART 1

ONCE UPON A TIME... IN THE WEST

2 - CFPA NEWS - JULY 2016

Ladies and gentlemen,

Besides some rain last winter, Cali-fornia Season 2016 promises to be along, busy and hot one! Don’t staythirsty my friends… hydrate!

Congratulations to Jim Cook, for re-ceiving the International Aerial FireFighting “Walt Darran” Award for hiscontribution to this industry as thecreator of the Fire Traffic Area con-cept and procedure. Since its imple-

mentation, the FTA procedure improved the safety and efficiency ofAir Operations tremendously!

In recent years several pilots in our group retired or moved on to dif-ferent paths; Jim Dunn, Sharky Cornell, Les Koehler, Lee Monson, TedMundell, Patty Wagstaff, Bruce Wickert, Russ looney, Lee Donham,Bob DeVinny, Ray DiLorenzo, Lynn McGrew, Bob Forbes, Deen Oehl.Thanks for their contribution, dedication, and their professionalism.I’m sure that once in a while, they’ll stop by the Tanker Base to say Hiand keep in touch with aerial fire fighting industry.

Let’s not forget and keep Bob Finer and Craig Hunt in our thoughtsand their smiles in our memories…

To all the pilots who joined CFPA this year; Welcome aboard! 2016Tanker Trainees : Jesse Jenks, Jeff Sheftall,.

Good luck! Have a good training. Study hard and fly smooth…

Have a safe fire season,

JeromeT85 / CFPA Newsletter Editor

2016 Fire season

CFPANEWS

Editor : Jerome Laval([email protected])

Editorial staff : Cyril Defever,Frédéric Marsaly, Franck Mée

Designer : Philippe Laurent([email protected])

Contributors to this issue : James Dunn, Jim Merryfield, Kit Robinson, Dean Talley, Wes Schultz and Steve Whitby

As you can see, the overallpresentation of our newsletter hasevolved: after 5 summers offaithful heavy duty, graphicdesigner Cyril Defever has chosento concentrate on his own work,writing books and articles. As aresult, we are happy to welcomePhilippe Laurent as our newdesigner. Thank you Cyril for all thehard work you've done for us; weare now waiting for your articles,profiles and photos!

If you wish to contribute to ourNewsletters with articles, stories,photos, videos, or just want tosuggest interesting links, pleasedo. Send us your work in textformat (txt, doc, docx, rtf) andphotos as jpeg files. (And please,no PDF with your own layout!)

Photos: size 2400 px on thelongest side, with your name onthe photo (watermark) or in thefilename for credit.

And please, feel free to print the Newsletterand share it around!

FOT Rohnerville

Redding Chester

A-06

Chico

UKI Ukiah

A-140 T-85 T-86

GOO Grass Valley

A-460 T-80 T-74

A-440 T-82 T-83

A-15

PRB Paso Robles

A-410 T-76 & T-78

Santa Maria

A-509 L-B52

A-310 T-72 T-73

Ramona A-330 T-70 T-71

2016 Air Tactical & Airtanker

Dispatch Map

Denotes CDF Aircraft Denotes USFS Aircraft Denotes BLM Aircraft

SMX

HMT

RNM

CIC

O05 RDD

Hemet-Ryan

WJF Fox-Field Lancaster

PTV Porterville

A-07

FAT Fresno

CVH Hollister

022 Columbia

STS Sonoma

A-230 T-88 T-89 A-17

A-210 T-93

A-240 A-503 T-94 T-95 A-507

A-120 T-96

A-110 T-90 T-91

A-340 A-504 T-75

SBD San Bernardino

A-12

SIY Siskiyou

A-05

Revised April 2016

VCV Southern Logistics

06/07/16 14:40

R

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A fter attending San DiegoState, I very much en-joyed a fulfilling 10 year

career as a Paramedic. However,there was a moment about 5years in that I had a life changingrealization. Along with workingon a normal ground ambulance,I also crewed a medical life flight.There was one particular "darkstormy night" that changed meforever. While flying to San Fran-cisco, I would often sit in a jumpseat that faced forward in theCessna 421. That night, my nursepartner and I had a particularlytroublesome patient whoneeded much attention. My frus-trations were mounting with mytasks at hand. And at the mo-ment I was most exhausted, Ilooked forward to see two pilots

having the time of their lives upin the front seats! With theirheadsets on, they had NO ideawhat was happening a mere footbehind them. That was it! I was tobecome a pilot.

Next came the usual years oftraining, instructing and thencargo. I flew a Cessna 402 fromEureka to Ukiah to load boxes,and then on to Sacramento.every night in the summer whenI taxied by the Cal Fire base inUkiah, I thought "that is thecoolest job flying airplanes".

After my share of throwingAmazon second day air boxesaround, I found a job flying a cor-porate Pilatus and Falcon 50. Ilearned a ton about corporate fly-

ing, but I also learned it wasn'tvery fulfilling either. I missedbeing part of a mission orientedcrew. The economy took care ofthis problem for me and I wasfurloughed early in the recession.

Then came 8 years flying an airambulance. My world had comefull circle! I was now flying someparamedics that I had trained tobe paramedics! I loved the mis-sion, but deep down, I knew I stillwanted to join Cal Fire.

I made it! I'm here!

Oh, and by the way....I'm pretty sure Tim Daly was

one of the guys in the front ofthat 421 on that dark stormynight! He still has no idea!

JIM MERRYFIELD - AIR ATTACK PILOT

FF Chris Krowel, Pilot Jim Merryfield, FF Peter Hewson, FF Cameron Morgan, FF Bill Hancock


We wish a happy retirement toour flying legends, Bob Forbes,Tanker pilot at Hemet and Ra-mona Air Attack Bases, BruceWickert, Tanker pilot at FresnoAAB, Les Koehler, Air Attack pilotat Hemet AAB, Ted Mundell,Tanker pilot at Porterville AAB andDeen Oehl, Tanker pilot at HemetAAB.

Photos by Steve Withby

HAPPY RETIREMENT !

1- Bob Forbes and Jeff Cavarra (Dyncorp Cal Fire avia-tion program Manager)

2- Deen Oehl and Justin McGough (Hemet-Ryan AAB Battalion chief)

3- Les Koeler and Justin McGough4- Bruce Wickert and Jeff Cavarra 5- Ted Mundell and Justin McGough6- Tanker 72, Deen Oehl's plane, under airfield firemen

water salute for their last flight together!

1

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“Not yet. Hold it. Hold it,”counseled Deen.

It was a long way down asteep hillside into a narrowcanyon with an exit to the West.The lead finally broke right at theend of the retardant line. I waiteda few seconds and touched offthe load, held the line for a fewseconds longer, then turnedright trailing the lead. Deen wasleaning forward intent on theview through the windscreen.The lead turned right andclimbed; we stayed low and flewstraight out into clear air.

“We’ll check out the drop andlet you know how it looks. Load

and return,” called the lead.

“It looked pretty good to me,”said Deen.

“Better than the last one. Atleast I had the tank armed,” Isaid.

Deen glanced at me and thecrack of a smile appeared.

I’ve known Deen for over thirtyyears but I had never flown withhim until I was assigned to be hisstudent. He was 80 when wemade the run down the canyonjust west of Hemet three yearsago. Within the spectrum of char-acters and personalities in the

airtanker business Deen Oehl,Deen-O, is a class act anchoringthe position of true gentleman. Idon’t believe I’ve ever heard himpass judgment or use an unkindword in reference to an individualalthough he will give you a criti-cal view of federal firefightingtactics vs. the Cal Fire rapid re-sponse and emphasis on InitialAttack.

At an age when most peoplehave spent fifteen or twentyyears perfecting their parcheesior practicing checkers Deen ap-pears to have finally hung up hisspurs. To say he has aged well re-ally doesn’t do him justice. I’veglimpsed bits of his past and metthe flamboyant Carmelita but Iwanted know more so I askedhim to tell me his story.

Deen is second generationfrom Germany. His grandfather,father, and his fathers’ brothersprocessed meat in SanBernardino. They couldn’t com-pete with the big corporate busi-nesses that had prospered inWorld War II and after so the fam-ily business was not an option.Deen took up flying while com-pleting High School at SanBernardino and some Junior Col-lege, earning a private license.The Korean War was on-goingand the Air Force was looking for

TRIBUTE TO DEEN OEHL

DEEN OEHL, THE DEEN OF TANKERS BY DEAN TALLEY

Deen and a B-47


Aviation Cadet’s. Deen signed upand traveled to Texas and then toGeorgia to begin his training in aSuper Cub. He was right at home.The next step was a T-6 Texan.After mastering the Texan hemoved to Texas stepping into thesingle engine fighter pipeline atLaredo AFB in the new T-28A. TheAir Force liked the T-28A becausethe cockpit resembled the F-86although Deen’s next ride was aT-33. Meanwhile the Korean Warended.

Next stop Del Rio AFB flying T-33’s shooting up targets with a.50 caliber cannon or bouncingbombs off the turf, skip bomb-ing. What could possibly gowrong? Advanced Fighter Tacticstraining in the F-84 at Luke AFB,Arizona, followed this. As if hewasn’t having enough fun, whynot go to Bergstrom AFB, AustinTexas and work on air-to-air skillsand formation in an F-84F. Mean-while the momentum of the Ko-rean War pilot pipeline finallybegan to encounter friction. TheF-84F was used as an “ExternalNuclear Device” delivery, em-ploying the “LABS maneuver”(Low Angle Bombing System):later used with the B-47 forStrategic Air Command, SAC, on

a trial basis. But the chill of theCold War was changing thestrategies and demands of theAir Force. Deen was a little vagueabout his next transition.

The Air Force Gods placedDeen in the B-47 mediumbomber based at March AFB,Riverside, California, his oldstomping grounds. His trainingtook place in Wichita Kansaswhere he was checked out as aco-pilot. The Boeing B-47 was thecountry's first swept-wing multi-engine bomber. It represented amilestone in aviation history anda revolution in aircraft design.Every large jet aircraft today is adescendant of the B-47. Deentransitioned from one engine tosix flying an aircraft equipped

with defenses only in the tail be-cause no fighters could catch it.

While living in an apartmentcomplex in Riverside Deen metCarmelita and Ray Keown.Carmelita was a pretty exoticflower. She had been a per-former in the USO in WWII. Shesang and danced supporting thetroops and later appeared in sev-eral movies. When I met her inthe 1980’s she drove up in a 1983Excalibur, patterned on a 1930’sMercedes. She wore a floral printand appeared to be, royalty, thereigning queen of Top Mud.When Deen met the couple theyowned a Mexican restaurant inRiverside. They became fastfriends and later changed thecourse of his life.


Deen in front of a Sabreliner(Deen Oehl Collection)

USAF Fighter F-84F (USAF)



Deen qualified as an AircraftCommander and IP, InstructorPilot, in the B-47. He flew the B-47until 1961 when he transitionedto B-52s initially training at CastleAFB, California. In 1958 SAC es-tablished strategic wings atGrand Forks AFB, North Dakota,Minot AFB, North Dakota, andGlasgow AFB, Montana. Aftertraining Deen reported to his per-manent duty assignment inMinot North Dakota. He spentthree years at Minot during thehottest part of the Cold War flyingB-52s carrying nuclear weapons,missiles, and Top Secret docu-ments outlining what to do if the

Russians attacked. FortunatelyDr. Strangelove was not in chargeand Deen didn’t have to do aSlim Pickens.

During the Cuban missile cri-sis in October 1962 the takeoffintervals shrank to 15 seconds forloaded B-52s on alert 24/7, mis-sions lasting 24 hours. DepartingMinot they climbed to 30+ thou-sand feet and flew to New Eng-land then headed out to theAtlantic Ocean. The aircraft refu-eled over the Atlantic going northto and around Newfoundland,northwesterly over Baffin Bay to-wards Thule Air Base, Greenland,

orbited Thule for several turns,refuel, then departed westacross Queen Elizabeth Islands,the North Pole, and on to Alaska.After once again refueling overthe Pacific they flew southeastthen returned to Minot.

Deen recounted working 24-25 days at a time and spoke ofmass takeoff’s of B-52s in fifteensecond intervals. After ten yearsthe “Who has more fun?” ques-tion became more than rhetori-cal, Deen decided to put in forhis resignation from the Air Forceto pursue a more entrepreneuriallife in California.

Old Chinese saying; “May youhave an interesting life.” Oldgringo saying; “I’ve got somebad news and some worsenews.” The Air Force wasn’tthrough with Deen. He got ordersto report to C-123 training beforetraveling to exotic Viet Nam.Meanwhile, back in Riverside,Carmelita and Ray were dis-traught that their good buddyDeen was not leaving the AirForce to work with them manag-ing a second restaurant. But theystill had cards to play.

In their circle of friends fromDeen’s time at March AFB wasGeneral Old. Carmelita and Rayapproached General Old of the15th Air Force Command, and ex-pressed their displeasure withthe Air Force decision process.What happens in Riverside staysin Riverside so we will never

USAF advanced training plane T-28 (F. Marsaly)

USAF strategic bomber B-52 (F. Marsaly)

know the details but new ordersmaterialized and Deen was goingto the Boeing Plant in WichitaKansas, Systems Command,Flight Test. This is where themagic happened to B-52s. Air-frames were modified with thelatest weapons and navigationsystems. After modification it fellto the crews to calibrate theweapons systems at bombranges in Arkansas and operatingout of Fort Smith.

Unlike SAC they were down inthe dirt, 150-500 feet. I got thefeeling Deen found this more ap-pealing than flying nukes at flightlevels. They also tested and cali-brated the new “Low Level Ter-rain Avoidance and FollowingRadar System” and coupled ILSapproach systems. He had agleam in his eyes recounting

lightly loaded B-52 ILS depar-tures returning to Wichita. “Justbring the nose up to 45 degreesand climb back to cruising alti-tude.”

While at Systems CommandDeen was qualified in the B-52E,F,G, and H models as an Air-craft Commander and IP. His rankwas captain but he was often theAircraft Commander to higher-ranking officers hoping to buildtime, qualifications or meet flighttime minimums. Deen was incharge of scheduling when air-craft were ready to return tosquadrons and he liked to writehimself in for the California runs.On one flight to Beal AFB his rightseater asked if he could take theplane as they approached theSierras. Deen relinquished thecontrols. He said the guy started

his descent right away, eventu-ally terrain following. He buzzedthe field at Grass Valley beforelanding at Beal AFB. It was yearslater Deen learned his co-pilot onthat flight, Dick Miller, had diedflying an F7F out of Ukiah work-ing fires. He finally understoodthey had been buzzing the basethat day. Pretty cool when thefirst time you do a low pass on atanker base it’s in a B-52.

I asked Deen what he pre-ferred flying in the Air Force. Hesaid he would have stuck withsingle engine fighters but the jobat Systems Command held his in-terest as well. Two years into histour at Systems Command Deen’sresignation was approved. It hadbeen twelve years in the AirForce.

In 1964 Deen started a newcareer, restaurant manager.Carmelita and Ray opened a newrestaurant in Tustin, OrangeCounty, California. Deen workedwith their son at the new loca-tion. At the time Deen wasn’tquite through with the Air Force.He joined a Reserve Squadron atMarch AFB: they operated C-119s.



Strategic Air Command B-47 (USAF)

B-52 (USAF)


After one year he decided the re-serve gig wasn’t working with hisday job but it was a harbinger ofthe future.

Deen didn’t have a lot to sayabout the restaurant business,his occupation from 1964 until1979. He said he learned to dealwith “the public” but he did notenjoy it. He said dealing with “the

public” was one reason he hadno interest in the airlines. Itwasn’t completely clear to mebut Carmlita and Rays’ son wenton to other endeavors and thesecond restaurant was closed.Deen continued to work with Rayand Carmelita at the Riverside lo-

cation. At some point theymoved from Riverside to Hemetand commuted to work. They leftthe business in 1979. Another fif-teen years had passed and Deenwas looking for a third career.

to be continued…


C-119 USAF (F. Marsaly)

B-52 in flight (USAF)

B-52 (F. Marsaly)

T-6 Texan (USAF)

CFPANEWS


This year, the InternationalAerial Firefighting Conference,organized by Tangent Link, wasback in Sacramento McClellan.Along an extensive two-day pro-gram, speakers covered everyaspect of our business. On themorning of the second day, astatic exibition and flight displaywas held on the airfield. The firstpublic appearance of the brandnew Global Supertanker ServicesBoeing 747-400 was obviouslythe main highlight of the show,but many other planes and heli-copters were not to be missed.

In september, Tangent Linkwill give you rendez-vous in Ade-laide Australia for the Aerial Fire-fighting Conference ASIA and inspring 2017, the event will takeplace in Nîmes, France.

AERIAL FIRE FIGHTING INTERNATIONAL 2016

Global Supertanker Services new Boeing 747-400 Tanker 944(see page 18 for full story). (Jim Dunn)

H215 (new name for the former AS332 family) presented by Airbus Helicopters with a charming Tangent Link staff crew.


Former Aero Union Firestar, now Maffs Corpairplane, take off to Chico. (W. Schult)

Pilatus PC-12 from Colorado Division of FirePrevention and Control.

Air Sprays's Air Tractors, available with floatsor not. (Jim Dunn)

Cal Fire OV-10D Bronco with its new 5 blades propellers.To be used as a Lead Plane in California.


Air Sprays's Air Tractors, available with floats or not.

Civilian UH-60A Black Hawk from TimberlineHelicopters, Idaho. (Jim Dunn)

RJ-85 Tanker 161 from Conairand Aero Flite. (Jim Dunn)

Tanker 83 from Columbia AAB presented by Cal Fire and Dyncorp.

Bombardier 415 SuperScooper from Aero Flite.


During the event dinner of-fered to the Aerial FireFightingConference participants, the thirdWalt Darran International AerialFirefighting Award was pre-sented to Cal Fire pilot, Jim Cook.

In 2001, following a tragic in-flight collision between to CDFTrackers, resulting in the death ofboth pilots, Jim Cook had a deepthought and designed a "FireTraffic Aera", a single airspacesystem which allows crews of dif-ferent aircraft involved in fire-fighting to operate withoutinterfering with each other, thusavoiding any risk of further in-flight collisions. This system hassince been adopted for every fireoperation in the USA.

It was a giant step for flightsafety in firefighting operationsand for this, Jim well deservedthis Award.

WALT DARRAN INTERNATIONAL FIREFIGHTING AWARD 2016

- Tanker pilot Jim Cook, (right)receives his award from thehands of Dave Wardall (CalFireChief Ret) and AAF board Mem-ber, while Tangent Link Chair-man Rear Admiral TerryLoughran (left), tells the guestsabout Jim's career and the FireTraffic Area concept.


In December 2013, EvergreenInternational ceased activity.Awkward timing: their Super-

tanker, which was stored inMarana, Arizona, had just beenpromised a “call when needed”contract with the US Forest Serv-ice. And these last few years,Very Large Air Tankers (VLAT)which had been awarded call-when-needed contracts haveproven very useful, and some-times even more profitable ex-clusive contracts came afterhard-working seasons.

To be a candidate to thesecontracts, Boeing 747-100Tanker 979 had to get back inthe air, which needed to findturbojets and perform a C checkmaintenance operation, a full in-spection of the airframe, en-gines and systems. The wholeoperation would cost an esti-mated $1 million; Evergreenpostponed the check for a fewmonths… and went bankrupt inthe meantime. The aircraft re-mained in Marana while herowner’s assets were auctioned.

According to the terms of thepotential USFS contract, the

plane was to yield $75’000 eachday it was activated, plus $12’000per flight hour, and fuel and re-tardant were to be supplied by the federal organization. Eventhough USFS promises can befluctuating, these terms werevery attractive. Therefore, formerEvergreen employees, most ofthem deeply involved in the Su-

pertanker project, created a new,dedicated company: Global Su-perTanker Services, LLC. WhenEvergreen was liquidated, theybought the pressurized drop sys-tem, spare parts and patents.They also acquired a younger,more efficient aircraft: the newSupertanker, third of its kind, isbased on a Boeing 747-400.

NEW BOEING 747 SUPERTANKERBY FRÉDÉRIC MARSALY, TRANSLATION FRANCK MÉE.

The Boeing 747 JA8086 landing at Hong Kong in 2010. (Peter Bakema)

GSS Supertanker at McClellan (W. Schultz)


N744ST (cn 25308, the 885th747 to be produced) was built in1991 as a Boeing 747-446, andfirst flew on 25 October 1991.Delivered to Japan Airlines thefollowing month and registeredJA8086, she would be flyingpassenger service until 2010.She was then bought as N238ASby AerSale Inc., a company ded-icated to second-hand aircraftmarket, which turned her into a747-446(BCF) freighter and soldher to Evergreen (as N492EV) in2012. In November 2013, whenEvergreen ceased operations,she was put on storage in Vic-torville, California.

Global SuperTanker Serviceschose a 747-400 because of itsimproved efficiency. 25 yearshave passed since its inception:the time has now come whenbig airlines start selling aircraft ofthis type, and airframes whichstill have some potential be-come affordable. N744ST hasflown 75’000 hours; a properlymaintained 747 can log 100’000flight hours, which lets her some25’000 hours to live. As a tankerseldom flies more than 500hours a year, she could remainactive for decades.

With new, more powerful en-gines than the previous Super-tankers, this new aircraft cantake-off at a maximum weightclose to 400 tons, but she prob-ably won’t meet this weight veryoften in her new career. There-fore, she will have a more favor-able thrust-to-weight ratio, whichis obviously interesting for thismission. Her more modern con-ception also implies rationalizedmaintenance processes, which

N492EV waiting in Victorville in early 2015 (Sawas Garozis)

Extract from Evergreen Patent showing the layout ofinternal tanks inside the first Supertanker.

30 April 2016 in Colorado Springs, the new Super-tanker tanker conduct its first its first ground drop.(GSS)


will reduce immobilization timesand cost for these essential op-erations. The 747-400 also has a“glass cockpit”, with standardnavigation, systems manage-ment and operating systemsconceived for a two-man crew,while previous Supertankersneeded a flight engineer to facethe workload of planes con-ceived in the late 60s.

After being bought by GSS,N744ST quickly went through aC-check operation in Victorville.On 23 January 2016, she flew toMarana, Arizona, to get hermodern, gleaming and spectac-ular new painting. She waschristened Spirit of John Muir,after the famous Scottish-Amer-ican writer/adventurer — whowas also a naturalist and a pio-neer in the environmentalmovement.

Her now permanent base isin Colorado Springs, but her firstpublic display was on 22 March

2016 in Sacramento: she wasthe great attraction during theAerial Fire Fighting conference,held on McClellan airfield.

During her painting stay inMarana, the release systemtaken from the first-ever Super-tanker was also installed. Thisneeds a bit of an explanation.During the adventures of Ever-green’s Supertankers, two suc-cessive tanks systems wereconceived. The first one wasmade of steel and installed onpallets, so it could easily get inand out through the nose doorof a Boeing 747-200F, keepingthe multi-purpose abilities ofthe type. This was not possiblefor the former passenger 747-100s, so Evergreen conceived anew, lighter, aluminum-builtmechanism, which was perma-nently installed through the sidecargo door. When the secondSupertanker was stored, thewhole system was taken off the

plane… and when Evergreenwas liquidated, it was nowhereto be found!

Consequently, when GSSbought Evergreen’s fire fightingassets, it included only the firstdropping system, which hadbeen cleanly stored in Marana.So it is this one, cleared of itsnow useless pallets but retainingits 75’000 liters capacity, whichwas installed in the new 747-400.

As the release system was al-ready approved by the FAA andthe Interagency Airtanker Boardin the Forest Service, the adap-tation should be by quick andN744ST could be a candidate tooperations as soon as this sum-mer. The first ground dropswere made on 30 April 2016 andthe next day, she made her firsttest flight and first aerial drop.Her crew consisted of Cliff Hale,GSS chief pilot and more impor-tantly former Evergreen Super-tanker captain — the man who

The first ever drop test from a fire fightingBoeing 747-400 (Anthony Cornelius)


flew more than 90% of trial anddemonstration flights, as well asevery operational drop. His firstofficer was Tom Parsons, an ex-perienced tanker pilot who hasflown with Neptune Aviation. Athird seasoned pilot has alsobeen hired: in the process of ex-tending his type rating, he wasput in charge of rough terraintesting.

For most passenger or freightmissions, Boeing 747-400s re-quire only a two-man crew, butfire fighting is another deal. GSSinvented a third crew member,named Drop System Operator.Bob Soelberg, GSS Vice Presi-dent and Supertanker programmanager, explains: “Global Su-perTanker has felt from the be-ginning that both pilots need tobe focused on flying and com-munications, not drop systemset up. For that reason, we have

modified the flight deck toallow Don Paulsen, our ChiefSafety Officer and former flightengineer, to act as our DSO.”

Settled in the center jump-seat, Don Paulsen will be re-sponsible for selecting theproper settings for the retardantrelease system, according tothe situation and the require-ments from the authorities, andthen tell the pilots when the de-vice is ready to drop. In Ever-green’s Supertankers, the flightengineer was in charge of therelease system, with some infor-mation also displayed on thecockpit’s center console; on thenew installation, everything wasdesigned to be in the DSO’sreach. This new job could be of-fered to former flight engineersas well as seasoned air mechan-ics, with a proper DSO trainingcourse still to be approved by

the FAA; meanwhile, a secondDSO has already been hired andshould also be trained as a firstofficer.

This new aircraft also has im-portant room for improvements.For example, Supertanker oper-ations not only need an airfieldwith a long and resistantenough runway; they also needan air compressor, necessary tothe pressurized release system.GSS thinks about installing twocompressors aboard, so theplane would be able to arm herequipment on her own. Newwiring was pre-installed for po-tential new equipments, notablyfor new data management re-quirements — thus, the Super-tanker could offer a load oftechnical data about it systemsas well as its structure. Yet,these modifications are a futurematter and the aircraft currently

Global Supertanker Services plane at Sacrametno McClellan for the AFF2016 conference. (Jim Dunn)


still conforms to Evergreen orig-inal STC: according to Bob Soel-berg, “some pre-positioning ofcomponents will allow us to re-spond to future requests for var-ious data output. This decision[not to make new installationsright now] was based on thelack of clear guidance on whichsystem would be most commonamong the various agencies, aswell as our desire not to delaythe FAA STC process.”

When the second Super-tanker came in Châteauroux,France, in July 2009, Evergreenwas already considering nightoperations, thanks to the craft’sability to drop higher than con-ventional tankers and avoidrisks of flying too close to theground. GSS is also working thisway and has already madesome preliminary studies in thatregard, analyzing experiencefrom L.A. Fire Department heli-copter pilots, who have beenflying by night for years. To addnight VFR capabilities to the Su-pertanker, many evolutions areconsidered, such as installing

enhanced vision systems ormodifying the cockpit so itcould be used while wearingnight vision goggles. No decisionhas yet been made, as it is still along-term evolution project.

Amongst VLATs, the Super-tanker is also unique in beingqualified to work on oil spills,Evergreen having entered thismarket after the DeepwaterHorizon disaster: N744ST will beable to release oil dispersant assoon as she’ll be certified. Sincethe dropping system is made oftwo individual, parallel, inde-pendent 37’500-liter lines oftanks, GSS says she could evenwork as a fire suppression tooland an oil dispersant vector atthe same time. From its base inColorado Springs, she couldreach the Gulf of Mexico within3 hours and get anywhere in theworld in about 20 hours; as saysBob Soelberg: “Our niche is theability to respond quickly toareas of the world where localcapabilities are limited.”

In the near future, certifica-tion should not be a problem

and the main question is: willthe USFS, which still lacks somefire fighting aircraft, honor thepromises made to Evergreen in2013? That is the hole point,though GSS is also talking toAustralia (who has been suc-cessfully using one of 10Tanker’s Douglas DC-10s for thelast two years) and to the Euro-pean Union’s Emergency Re-sponse Center.

Evergreen’s history hasshown that such a huge planeseldom finds missions bigenough for her. Yet, these lastfew years (and especially thevery rough 2015 season) sawvery impressive fires and askedfor an intensive use of VLATs;particularly, the three DC-10sbelonging to 10 Tanker, LLChave proven more than useful.Can the new Boeing 747-400 bea better match for the next yearsfires? Will the Forest Service fol-low up on GSS’s arguments? Thenext few weeks will be decisivefor this exciting project.

Tanker 944 first drop (GSS)


My earliest recollectionof aircraft came at avery young age. Ac-

cording to my mother and fatherit was when I was just six months,to a year old. My parents wouldtake me to our local airport (RenoInternational Airport) to watch air-planes. They said that it wasfunny watching my face and eyeslight up when a 707 or DC-8would pass overhead. I lookedstartled, but never cried, mymother said.

Later on, our house in Sparks(Nevada) was on the easternbase leg into Reno Internationaland I remember watching theNevada Air National Guard's RF- 101 Voodoos returning froma mission, they would fly overthe house in groups of two,four, or even eight aircraft.

But it was the sound of the ra-dial engines passing over in theforms of the DC-7s, 4s, PB4Ys,and C-119s heading out or backfrom fires from the Reno/Stead

Airport (north of Reno) duringsummer months, that would for-ever be ingrained in my mind óputting me on the path ofwatching and later photograph-ing tankers.

My earliest recollection oftankers was when I was sixyears old (1972), along with mydad (who was my only form oftransportation at that youngage) and his old Super 8mmmovie camera he liked to packaround with him to film familyand other events, including avi-ation, we came upon a fire inTruckee River Canyon east ofSparks. The fire was on thesouth side of the canyon justover the ridge line above a reststop (now closed) on I-80 east-bound. From our location wecould not see the drops, but the

sounds of the C-119's as theypowered up after the drops andseeing them appear over theridge farther east, was an expe-rience I will never forget. It wasalways the sound of the radialengines and, in this case, jet en-gines, that drew me back eachtime.

A couple of years later, whilevisiting family friends in south-east Carson City, Nevada, anddirectly in the departure path ofthe Minden-Tahoe Airport, I re-member watching DC-7s and 6spass overhead heading to fires.But it was a late 70's experiencethat hooked me on air tankersfor a lifetime.

My father had pulled off ofHighway 395 Southbound northof Reno, near the Red Rock exitso we could watch a small fire

ONCE UPON A TIME… IN THE WEST

KIT ROBINSONMacavia DC-6 Tanker 47. Doyle Fire, Doyle CA. 1987. (Kit Robinson)

Hemet Valley C-119 Tanker 81.Doyle Fire,CA. 1987. (Kit Robinson)


which was threatening a homeon a hill south of the highway. Iremember getting out of the carand just the smell of smoke andthe ash hitting my face wassomething I would take fromthe experience, but the bestwas yet to come.

My father yelled out, "Here shecomes." I had no idea what hemeant, but was soon to find out.

There was a growing rum-bling sound and a DC-7 soonmaterialized from the smoke, itwas dropping retardant about300 yards south of our location.As she screamed by, the sound,the small spray of retardant thatdrifted over ( just missing us),was all I needed... I was hookedon tankers.

By the 1980s I was photo-graphing tankers out ofReno/Stead working large fireslike the "Sparks/Mustang Fire"(18’000 acres) in 1981, and the"Zolezzi-Washoe fires" (8’000acres).

The "Mitchell Canyon Fire"(14’000 acres) in 1984, got memy first look at the very differentlooking C-123, #63 operated byTBM. I was also lucky enough tophotograph the mighty KC-97(#84) on July 22, 1985, as shewas working fires in AntelopeValley area north of Reno/Stead.

I obtained my driver's licenseand a new Canon AE-1 35 mmcamera (which I still use to thisday). The adventures wouldgrow from here. As my adven-tures in the '90s would take meon missions to photographevery operational large tankerand get action shots on activefires.

DC-6 Tanker 68 Reno Stead NV. Summer 1985. (Kit Robinson)

KC-97 Tanker 84, captained by Bob West. Reno Stead Nv. July 22 1985. Antelope Fire (8,000 acres). (Kit Robinson)

DC-7 Tanker 61 departing Reno Stead NV. Summer 1985. First takoffphoto I took of a Dc-7. Sound was incredible ! (kit Robinson)

BLONDE LINE HABANO LINE

A cigar made with Habano Rosado wrapper and 75% ligero-leaf filler … all from the richest OPA-seed tobacco plants … cannot be smooth. But it is. Amazingly so. Impossibly so. It’s all due to our Soft Crush Fermen-tation process. During fermentation as bundles of tobacco age, we apply weight to add pressure (a “soft crush”). This increases the temperature and duration of the natural heat of fermentation. Oils are drawn to the surface, sweating out the bitterness of the ligero leaf while allowing the floral flavors to blossom. The result is pleasure with every puff – a truly bold and complex flavor with a surprising absence of peppery bite. It is because it shouldn’t work that it has never been tried. And it is precisely why Bloodline OPA is truly different.

IMPOSSIBLY SMOOTH?

When I set out to create a truly different cigar, I knew I had to go about it a different way. I decided to trace the world's best

tobaccos back to their original seeds. On a government-sanctioned educational trip to Cuba, I discovered the original growing fields of Cuba’s three most respected tobacco families: Oliva, Perez and Aganorsa (OPA). The unusually refined qualities of their tobacco plants remain in their seed as they now grow in specific regions of Nicaragua. The blend of leaves born of the Cuban OPA fields creates more than a distinct flavor. It creates a BLOODLINE. - Micah Johnson

I SEARCHED FOR THE

BEGINNING.AND I DISCOVERED

SOFT CRUSH

FERMENTATION

so simple

it’s impossible

Stemma 6½ x 44

Stock 6 x 60

Progeny (Torpedo) 7 x 56

Lineage 5 x 50

Vestige 6 x 54

ROBUSTO 5 x 50

PETIT LANCERO 6½ x 44

TORO 6 x 50

BIG TORO 6 x 60

CHURCHILL 7 x 50

During the fermentation process, tobacco leaves generate natural heat. Our Soft Crush Fermentation process adds pressure, a gentle squeeze under weight, that increases the temperature and duration of this natural heat. Bitterness sweats out while desired flavors blossom. That's why Bloodline cigars – made with up to 75% rich ligero leaves – offer truly complex flavor with surprisingly little bite.

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CalFire Tanker working on the Sherpa Fire. (credit Mike Elisason via Cal Fire)


GRASS VALLEY AIR ATTACK BASE IS GETTING READY ! BY WES SCHULTZ


Documents

THE CALIFORNIA FIRE PILOTS ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER … · the california fire pilots association newsletter the walt darran award 2016 new boeing 747-400 supertanker the deen of tankers