"patrick mitchel" wrote in message
...
After watching the multiplicity of ac doing their jobs on the southern cal
fires this last week and hearing that the guvmint C130 had the wrong sized
tanks and the forestry dept and said guvmint were haggling over what
should be done, I thought I'd ask what is the opinions of others regarding
what current - or hypothetical craft would be considered for the role.
Thanks Pat

The ideal fire bomber is the CL-415.

There is nothing out there that can put more water on a fire per hour than
this plane. A small but to make this statement true is a lake or river
nearby that can be used for airborne scooping.

A CL-415 with a nearby water source can put as much as 63,000 gallons on a
fire in an hour. Other planes have to return to an airstrip and refill,
taking 30 minutes or more for one trip. A CL-415 can put a full load on a
fire and scoop up 1400 gallons and be back to the fire ready to drop in 1
1/2 minutes, or less. 45 trips per hour X 1400 gallons = 63,000 gallons per
hour. Impressive.
--
Jim in NC