By Derek Royal
The 2010-2011 summer may have been one of the quietest fire seasons in recent memory, but severe flooding in NSW, Queensland and Victoria kept the NSW Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) extremely busy. Derek Royal looks at the role the RFS aviation team plays when facing the wrath of Mother Nature.
MARYANNE Carmichael is the Rural Fire Service’s aviation manager. Operating out of offices located near Sydney’s Olympic complex at Homebush Bay, she heads a small team dedicated to providing aerial support during bush fires throughout NSW. That support extends to other state government agencies such as the ACT Rural Fire Service, National Parks and Wildlife Service, NSW State Emergency Service (SES) and Forests NSW.
“Aircraft have become a critical component in combating bush fires, but they’re also extremely important when utilised during other natural disasters such as flooding,” Maryanne tells Aviator. “We use helicopters a lot to deploy and retrieve personnel and equipment, a process which is quicker and more efficient than we would achieve by road.”
BATTLING THE BLAZES
Australian bush fires are fierce. They’re driven by frontal systems and hot, dry winds. They’ve been known to have 10 mile fronts, they’ve had up to 80km/h winds, but if they can be stomped on right at the start, they “can” be contained. This means using aircraft to get on the fire early and stopping it from spreading to uncontrollable proportions.
As a result of the ferocity of the bush fires, aerial firefighting is a dangerous job and RFS pilots need to be experienced and well-trained in order to operate in what are often life-threatening conditions. Extreme heat, fierce winds, thick smoke, rugged terrain, dangerous obstacles and machines operating at the edge of their flight envelope, are typical conditions presented to the pilots and crew of firefighting aircraft.
“The pilots encounter wind, turbulence, heat, limited visibility and need to contend with other aircraft operating in the same vicinity,” Maryanne says. “And they obviously operate close to the ground,” increasing the danger component considerably.
During bushfires, helicopters are at their best in the initial attack phase, often slowing the movement and intensity of the fire so that crews can get in and address the situation on the ground. Fixed wing aircraft on the other hand are great in grass country and in some instances, rugged bushland.
Rotary pilots often change locations because drop areas constantly change. Same with dip sites. They also have to deal with an urban interface that includes powerlines, propane tanks, livestock and airspace. Danger is a constant companion of RFS pilots and crew.
But before any aircraft are sent in to combat the fires, aerial reconaissance flights are deployed on days of potential fire weather.
“The majority of the fire spotting is ground-based,” Maryanne says. “We have a lot of ground-based fire detection systems and once we receive a request for an aircraft to assist, we generally task the closest aircraft to where the request has come from to do the job.”
“We need to consider which aircraft will have the quickest response time so we look at where aircraft are located, how quickly they can respond, and what the actual request is. There’s no point sending a very small machine when you need something with a bigger water bombing capability.”
The RFS has a number of aircraft on dedicated contracts (at the time of writing there were 24 companies contracted to the agency) and they also utilise aircraft from what is known as the “call when needed” list. Contracts usually cover an 84 day period, with extension options available if required.
The RFS has at its disposal up to 120 aircraft, from fixed wing reconaissance machines such as Cessnas and Partenavias, through to fixed wing bombing aircraft, mostly consisting of a selection of Air Tractors. In the past three years the RFS has trialled an Air Tractor 802 floatplane, which operates out of Grafton. Designed in a fire bomb configuration, the aircraft’s useful water capability has proved to be successful and according to Maryanne, “an excellent step forward”. Rotary wing aircraft utilised by the agency include Erickson Air-Crane S64s, Bell 214Bs, Bell 212s, BK117s and EC145s.
The RFS also has access to aircraft with gimbal-mounted high definition cameras and FLIR (Forward Looking Infra Red) which, through a microwave link, offer direct infra red vision or high definition vision back to RFS headquarters. This can be achieved within a radius of between 250km and 300km.
“We have the ability to put both feeds into our system and to relay them to the respective districts as required,” Maryanne says. “We’ve had this air view capability for around four years and because the video is cinematography quality, it has been a spectacular success. If we’re outside of that 250km to 300km range, we have the ability to use portable equipment as an alternative option.”
The RFS also has a Kingair 200T with infra red line scanning capability. The aircraft cruises at 30,000 feet and the line scanning capability allows it to see through smoke, enabling it to accurately plot the location of fires.
LOGISTICAL CHALLENGE
Catering for firefighting aircraft and crews in remote locations is an immense exercise but it’s one that the RFS handles well. One day last season the agency had 75 aircraft operating at one time, a massive logistical challenge.
“Providing a fuel solution to remote areas is quite a challenge, but a local area that has requested an aircraft still has to be reasonably self-sufficient with drum stock and fuel,” Maryanne says. This is necessary to enable aircraft to complete their designated missions out of remote locations as effectively and efficiently as possible, especially the more forward command posts located deep in rugged bushland.
“The majority of our contracted aircraft actually come with a fuel truck,” Maryanne says. “We’ve come a long way from just having drum stops through to having many fuel trucks available, a scenario that provides us with greater flexibility for the task at hand. All our operations have trained personnel to provide support on the ground and in the air. To maintain these skills, we have an offseason training program between RFS and National Parks and Wildlife Service personnel, where all of our support personnel is trained to assist aerial operations throughout the summer time.”
For helicopter pilots looking at landing a gig with the RFS, minimum requirements include 1,500 hours command flying time, 100 hours of fire experience, plus low level experience. Pilots and crew also need to be experienced in operations such as winch and sling work and must be trained in helicopter underwater escape training (HUET), crew resource management (CRM) and dangerous goods. Contractors also face stringent requirements, including high visibility paint on the fuselage and rotor blades of all aircraft, appropriate avionics, appropriately qualified pilots and operator provision of all necessary firefighting equipment such as belly tanks and buckets.
But despite the invaluable contribution achieved by aircraft, not to mention the tough training requirements, neither helicopters or aeroplanes offer the perfect solution to bushfires.
“There is not one aircaft that is the be-all and end-all fix to fire fighting,” a veteran bush fire pilot tells Aviator. “Each aircaft has it’s specific place and mission, there are so many variables: the situation, location and weather to name but three. The one thing that everyone forgets is that we (in the aircraft community) do not put out the fires. It’s the crews on the ground who do that. They are the unsung heroes. We just support them.”
Maryanne agrees. “The bottom line is that aircraft on their own very rarely extinguish a fire,” she says. “They’re a fantastic support for ground fire fighters who are the ones who actually get in there and mop up.”
FLOODS
WHILE providing aerial bush fire solutions is the primary function of the Service’s aviation section, RFS helicopters have also been critical participants in helping regions decimated by other natural disasters such as serious floods.
The lack of bush fire activity and the devastating floods throughout eastern Australia over the summer months saw the RFS provide much-needed assistance to desperate communities across three states – NSW, Queensland and Victoria. Aviation resources were deployed to the Lockyer Valley in early January to assist with rescue operations, while two strike teams were sent to Brisbane to assist with the massive cleanup effort.
In Victoria, a number of crews worked in areas such as Echuca where record flood levels destroyed property; while on the local front, more than 700 NSW RFS personnel (including aviation crew) assisted the SES with flood operations.
Hundreds of requests for assistance were made to the SES to deal with flooding and storm operations across inland NSW and by 10 December a total of 33 Natural Disasters had been declared across the state. RFS deployed into the affected areas 16 helicopters, one fixed wing aircraft and five specialist aviation refuelling tankers, providing inspiration and assistance to locals living in dire circumstances.
While flooding in NSW had kept emergency services busy, the disaster in Queensland soared to treacherous levels. Eight people lost their lives by January 10 as the sunshine state suffered one of the most devastating floods in Australian history.
Helicopters were a crucial part of the NSW Government’s deployment of extra fire and rescue personnel to Queensland; while on its first day of operation, a Rural Fire Service helicopter sent to Toowoomba on 10 January rescued at least seven people stranded on roof tops. A second helicopter was deployed in support.
The RFS continued to provide assistance to the SES right across northern NSW as the State Air Desk deployed up to 17 aircraft a day across the state’s north and into neighbouring Queensland.
One experienced RFS commander (and his crew) who was deployed into some of the worst affected areas across the border, was personally responsible for the rescue of up to 50 people stranded and trapped in flood waters.
In atrocious conditions, including torrential rain, the pilot continually manoeuvred the chopper into position so his rescue crewman could be lowered safely into neck-high water and onto roof tops or floating cars. Leaving the crewman to prepare and secure the victims, the pilot was then required to later return to the scene to assist in winching or ‘hover loading’ people into the helicopter for transport to safer ground.
“I’ve been through plenty of bush fires but this was an experience I’d never seen before and I couldn’t believe the scale of destruction and devastation,” he said. “The actual task of locating the various sites and the rescues themselves, can be vastly complicated by local conditions, which is a common occurence during flooding.
“During situations like flooding and bush fires, from the time the crew gets to work to the time we sign off, we don’t know what our next job is going to be. So you need the ability to react and think quickly, to plan logically for whatever mission you’re about to fly. That’s our job ... that’s what we do, whether it’s bush fires or floods, we’re there to help as many people as possible.”
Back at RFS HQ, Maryanne Carmichael ponders the work conducted by the brave and skillful souls who put their lives on the line every time they strap into an aircraft and set out on rescue missions wherever they’re needed.
“What they do is quite a dangerous business and to me, the greatest satisfaction I receive in this job is knowing that at the end of the day all the aircraft are safely on the ground. That gives me satisfaction.”
Mother Nature is a formidable foe but whether she demonstrates her incredible fury through bush fires or floods, organisations such as the NSW Rural Fire Service and their remarkable aviation personnel continue to step up to the plate delivering solutions and inspiration to those in need.
