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Coulson's C130 - T131 in action

Tom Clayton said:
I saw four pilots that needed new shorts!
Click to expand...

that drop was very vanilla really.ive seen the old aero union p3s go below our canyon ridge tops and drop on the fire below where we were cuttin line.the old DC7 that was flying out of the redding base did the same thing about 3 years ago.was awesome.
 
hi,well you don't really see it in the video Tom,but that first plane,that is a "lead plane" or just Lead.it fly's ahead of the tankers to show them the line they want,then they put out a puff of smoke at the point they want the tanker to drop,if you look at the video closely,you can just make out the lead before they make their turn to the left,then the tanker drops and leaves straight out.or if it was a full load,or the last of the retardant,they will break right and leave the scene heading back to the tanker base.

for years i wondered what "the two track" meant when listening to the air attack on a fire,then one day i was helping to co-ordinate with the AA and ICP,i said to the air attack...whuts a two track,and his reply?.

Dave ya dork,yer standin on one now....i looked down and realized it was a dirt road,usually with a raised center or vegetation..but now any dirt road is a two track vs a paved road.
 
Thanks! I'd heard of lead planes before, but never seen one in action. I thought they were more like an advance scout - didn't realize they flew in such a tight formation!

Edit: First time I watched it, I thought the lead was behind and flew over the tanker. Another look with a different mindset shows how it really was.
 
eah Tom,there are three sets of fixed wing on fires,well big ones when the medium and VLATs are working...you have the first on scene as IA..the air attack officer in a Bronco in CA,the lead plane usually a king air or aero commander,and then the tankers,,SEATs S2Ts ( in CA) ,the heavies like the P2V (gone after this season) BEa 146/RJ85 (in future the 737s) and the VLATs,,C-130s DC10 and the 747.
 
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