Above: The Russian IL-76 very large air tanker taxis at Santiago, Chile, January 30, 2017. Photo by Bill Gabbert.
The Russian IL-76 air tanker has completed its assignment in Chile, dropping water to assist the firefighters on the ground who were dealing with a fire season much busier than usual. The aircraft arrived in Santiago on January 30, 2017 and left today, February 27. It can hold up to 11,574 gallons of water that with the assistance of gravity pours through two huge flapper valves into two large tubes on the rear cargo ramp.
While in the country it conducted 41 sorties and made 80 drops for a total of 449,092 gallons, according to the Russian agency EMERCOM. That organization provided the video below which includes some interesting shots inside the aircraft while dropping and of the water delivery system.