Live Updates: Heavy LA Winds Extend Wildfire Threat

On By Littum

Firefighting planes have dropped tens of thousands of gallons of water and pink fire retardant on the wildfires raging through Los Angeles over the past week.

These aircraft have long been vital against wildfires. They help limit the perimeter of flames and can attack rough terrain inaccessible to firefighters on the ground. With more than 60 planes and helicopters, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire, says it has the largest fleet of aerial firefighting equipment of any civilian agency in the world.

Two aircraft important to aerial firefighting are aerial tankers, which transport and drop the fire retardant, and the lead aircraft, a smaller, more agile aircraft that flies in front.

The lead aircraft maps the route and directs the air tanker where to make the drop, said Jordan Mattiacci, a pilot who flies aircraft that play a similar role in Australia. For the past few weeks, he has been out fighting a monstrous fire in the mountain ranges of Victoria state, as local officials said burned over 187,800 hectares of national park and agricultural land. Areas that could be targeted include along the edge of the fire to help stop its spread, or on houses farther away to protect them, he said.

Depending on the situation, said Mr. Mattiaci, he might do a demonstration flight to show the tanker the route. The lead aircraft is also responsible for making sure the air tanker has a safe way out, he said.

“Once we’re sure they have a picture of where we want it, they’ll drop,” he said, adding that the air tanker pilot is responsible for calculating how the wind will affect how the retardant falls.

Fire retardant coating on a farm in Mandeville Canyon.Credit…Loren Elliott for The New York Times

Piloting a firefighting plane is sweaty, tiring work, said Mr. Mattiacci. The conditions that increase fire risk – hot days, high winds, often mountainous areas – also provide turbulent flight conditions. The plane flies at low speeds, which increases turbulence, he added.

“You get pulled out of your seat and your head bangs against the roof,” he said. In the hot conditions, pilots need to stay hydrated enough not to need to use the bathroom on flights that can last up to five hours, he said.

There is also a risk of flying into the thick, blinding smoke that wildfires send up, he said. The plane flies low to the ground – sometimes as low as the height of the treetops – which means there is a significant risk of flying into power lines, radio towers and buildings.

“When we lose all visual reference, it becomes a little scary,” he said.

The stronger the wind, the more difficult it is to get close to the fire, as winds push the smoke around and obstruct the view.

The large air tankers in Australia drop inhibitingly from a height of about 100 to 150 feet, he said, while smaller ones can fly even lower. The largest tankers — which can carry up to 9,400 gallons of fire retardant at a time and have been used to fight the fires in Southern California — drop from about 250 feet, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

Mr. Mattiacci said he often feels pressured when he looks down from the cockpit at homes and structures under threat, knowing his job is to help save them. And if the fire retardant doesn’t land where it’s needed, he added during a fast fire, “there might not be another chance.”