Interview with Jim Fournier, air tanker pilot

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Fixed wingTags , , , ,

Jim Fournier of New Frontier Aviation flies a Dromader single engine air tanker (SEAT) for the state of South Dakota. On September 1, 2015 we caught up with him at the SEAT base in Hot Springs a couple of hours after he dropped a load of retardant on the Bitter Creek Fire which enabled the firefighters on the ground to tie in the last piece of open fireline, stopping it at 87 acres. Tanker 455 put one 550-gallon load on the fire, split into two drops.

Bitter Creek Fire
Bitter Creek Fire. Photo by Bill Gabbert.
T-455 Bitter Creek Fire
Tanker 455 orbits, sizing up the Bitter Creek fire. Photo by Bill Gabbert.
T-455 Bitter Creek Fire
Tanker 455 descending on final to make a drop on the Bitter Creek Fire. Photo by Bill Gabbert..
T-455 Bitter Creek Fire
Tanker 455 completing a drop on the Bitter Creek Fire. Photo by Bill Gabbert.
T-455, Dromader
Tanker 455, a Dromader. Photo by Bill Gabbert.
T-455, Dromader
Jim Fournier with Tanker 455, a Dromader. Photo by Bill Gabbert.