Last week I was up in Sacramento attending the Aerial Firefighting Conference, and I took a tour of Cal Fire aviation headquarters at McClellan Airtanker Base. The main topic of discussion was the C-130 tankers, and here is an update.
According to Cal Fire officials, One of the C-130s should be ready to go sometime this year, and the first one will be based at McClellan. The other six C-130s will be tanked soon. Fresno and Ramona have been confirmed for C-130s.
And here’s a note Bill Gabbert wrote two years ago:
With the transfer of ownership of the seven C-130H aircraft complete, installation of the 4000-gallon internal tanks has begun. The C-130s at McClellan will be used for initial attack delivery of retardant and the airtankers will provide additional support to the state’s existing fleet. The strategy during the transfer process has been long and challenging, but progress is underway!
After an exhausting wait, Cal Fire back in December worked with Congress to move seven military transport planes from the Coast Guard after Congress passed legislation to speed up the transfer. In a move by Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), Senator John Boozman (R-AR), and Congressman Ken Calvert (CA-41), the final version of the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act included an effort that recognized the work of Governor Newsom and Cal Fire Chief Joe Tyler, who pushed the effort over the finish line.
Cal Fire is now one big step closer to getting seven military transport planes from the Coast Guard to fight fire after Congress passed legislation this week to speed up the transfer.
According to a Politico report, the National Defense Reauthorization Act contains language to expedite the legal transfer of seven C-130 aircraft from the Coast Guard to Cal Fire. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) said Minnesota’s 133rd Airlift Wing was selected to receive 8 new C-130J aircraft; the new aircraft will replace decades-old C-130H aircraft, which were supposed to have been transferred over to California years ago.
In a move by Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), Senator John Boozman (R-AR), and Congressman Ken Calvert (CA-41), the final version of the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act includes an effort that recognizes the work of Governor Newsom and Cal Fire Chief Joe Tyler, who pushed the effort over the finish line.
Aerial Fire Magazine reported back in October that it was nearly five years ago that Congress told the U.S. Air Force to convert the seven surplus USCG C-130s aircraft into firefighting tankers for California. It never finished the job, and now California just wants the planes. Period. “We were fortunate this year to have a fire season that wasn’t like we’ve had in previous years,” said Ken Pimlott, now-retired chief of Cal Fire. “But it’s coming back — this is only one year. We can’t afford to lose any more time getting these aircraft retrofitted.”
So California Sen. Alex Padilla and Rep. Ken Calvert added a provision in the 2024 defense spending bill to hand over the C-130s to Cal Fire immediately — whether they were finished or not.
In service for more than 60 years, the C-130 is a workhorse of military aircraft, used for decades for troop transport, medical evacuations, search and rescue, and weather reconnaissance. As airtankers they have a drop capacity of 3000 gallons.
“This transfer will save lives, improve air quality, protect forestlands, and reduce carbon emissions,” said Matt Dias with Calforests, the California Forestry Association. “Adding seven C-130s to California’s aerial firefighting force is a truly remarkable advancement.”
Cal Fire Director Joe Tyler said the C-130s will help reduce loss of life and property to California wildfires. “I look forward to these aircraft joining our world-renowned aerial firefighting force,” he said. “Between earthquakes, wildfires and other natural disasters, California is one of the most costly and challenging states for property insurers and owners.” He said California can’t prevent earthquakes, but it can fight fire.
When Biden signs the defense bill into law, the planes will be transferred, and California will enter into a contract for the work. The first of the seven planes will likely be ready in time for the 2024 fire year, adding immediate value to the state’s fleet.
Matt Dias, president and CEO of the California Forestry Association, said the new aircraft will have the capacity to drop 3,000 gallons of retardant in less than five seconds, which is more than twice the load dropped by Cal Fire’s current S-2Ts.
“To be able to use aerial deployment of retardant for initial attack and suppression is really critical,” Dias said.
Retired Chief Ken Pimlott said the planes should give firefighters a big boost in future fire seasons, noting the engines on the C-130s. “In general they’re a bigger aircraft, they’re a four-engine aircraft where the S-2 is a two-engine,” he said. “Since it flies faster, it can return to the base and reload more quickly as well.”
The transfer has been delayed for years and became a priority for California’s firefighting agency. Coulson Aviation’s Retardant Aerial Delivery System (RADS) can be installed on virtually any C-130. The Coulson RADS-XXL is half the cost of competing systems — and one-sixth the weight — and it requires no additional crew or equipment. The RADS-XXL systems were selected for the Hercules C-130 aircraft fleet operated by Cal Fire.
Australia buys 20 C-130s from the U.S. — for $6.6 billion
Australia plans to buy 20 new C-130 Hercules aircraft from the United States in a $9.8 billion AUD ($6.6 billion USD) deal that will increase by two-thirds the size of the Royal Australian Air Force’s fleet of its second-largest heavy transport aircraft.
The announcement follows the U.S. Congress approval last year of a larger sale of 24 of the Lockheed Martin-manufactured propellor-driven aircraft.
The U.S. and Australia are conducting their biennial Talisman Sabre military exercise, according to an APNews report, along the Australian coast that this year involves 13 nations and more than 30,000 personnel — as global concerns intensify over an increasingly assertive China.
The first of the new 4-engine C-130s is expected in 2027. The deal was confirmed ahead of a meeting with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and their Australian counterparts for annual talks this week in Brisbane.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the federal government confirmed the purchase of 20 C-130s to expand and replace the current 12 aircraft operated by Defence. The heavy-lift aircraft can operate with short runways, dropping cargo and delivering personnel. The RAAF first took delivery of a C-130 in 1958, with the current fleet now more than 20 years old. Defence said the dozen existing C-130s would be replaced by 2030 and delivery of the remaining eight would be “subject to the U.S. production schedule.”
The C-130 Hercules have been involved in almost every major Australian Defence operation since they were first purchased, including civilian ops providing COVID vaccines and medical supplies, as well as during bushfires and floods. They are also often used in search and rescue missions.
Back in December, Australia added a new C-130 from Coulson along with a 737 to its resources, after an earlier issue with a C-130 tanker crash. In August of last year Bill Gabbert reported that three Americans were killed in a 2020 New South Wales accident involving the crash of Tanker 134.
Adding two more large airtankers will boost firefighting capability for Western Australia as emergency services personnel prepare for a busy bushfire season. A C-130 Hercules from Coulson Aviation was added on December 5 and is expected to serve in Western Australia (WA) for four seasons. The WA Minister for Emergency Services’ office said the Coulson contract was secured with an $11 million investment to ensure there is a locally based airtanker in the state for the first time.
The Australian Rural & Regional News reported that a Commonwealth-funded Boeing 737 will arrive later this month and will also be based in WA. This arrangement has been secured from the Australasian Fire and Emergency Service Authorities Council National Resource Sharing Centre. Both airtankers can carry more than 15,000 litres — just under 4,000 gallons — of fire suppressant, and both will be based at Busselton-Margaret River Airport in the South-West.
Western Australia’s aerial fleet comprises 36 rotary and fixed-wing suppression and aerial intelligence aircraft, and for the second consecutive year will feature two Black Hawk helicopters.
Mike McKeig took photos of Coast Guard aircraft 1706 arriving at Sacramento McClellan Airport yesterday, one of seven HC-130Hs being transferred to CAL FIRE to become, one day, air tankers. Its next stop might be in Kingman, AZ, or another facility, to get new livery.
The 1706 aircraft had its center wing box replaced before the legislation was passed in December of 2013 to transfer seven Coast Guard HC-130Hs to the Forest Service, and later to CAL FIRE. All of them will need to have depot level maintenance completed and retardant systems installed before the final transfer is complete.
Three Americans were killed in the 2020 New South Wales accident
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has released their final report on the January 23, 2020 crash of a C-130, Air Tanker 134, Bomber 134 (B134) as it was known in Australia. All three crewmembers were killed just after dropping retardant on a fire for the Rural Fire Service (RFS) in New South Wales, Australia.
It was very windy on January 23, with a forecast for the possibility of mountain waves. Before the incident a bird dog, similar to a lead plane, and Bomber 137 (B137), a Boeing 737, was tasked to drop on a fire in the Adaminaby area. Based on the weather the bird dog pilot declined the assignment. After B137 made a drop on the fire, the crew reported having experienced uncommanded aircraft rolls up to 45° angle of bank (due to wind) and a windshear warning from the aircraft on-board systems.
After completing the drop, the B137 crew sent a text message to the bird dog pilot indicating that the conditions were “horrible down there. Don’t send anybody and we’re not going back.” They also reported to the Cooma FCC that the conditions were unsuitable for firebombing operations. During B137’s return flight to Richmond, the Richmond air base manager requested that they reload the aircraft in Canberra and return to Adaminaby. The Pilot in Command (PIC) replied that they would not be returning to Adaminaby due to the weather conditions.
B134 was also dispatched to the fire at Adaminaby. While they were in route, the PIC of B137 called to inform them of the actual conditions, and that B137 would not be returning to Adaminaby.
After arriving at Adaminaby, the PIC of B134 contacted the air operations officer at the Cooma FCC by radio and advised them that it was too smoky and windy to complete a retardant drop at that location.
The Cooma air operations officer then provided the crew with the location of the Good Good Fire, about 58 km to the east of Adaminaby, with the objective of conducting structure and property protection near Peak View. Again, there was no birddog operating with the air tanker.
The C-130 went to Peak View as the only aircraft on scene. After dropping a partial load of retardant out of the 4,000-gallon tank the aircraft then made a left turn which resulted in a tail wind and it climbed for approximately 10 seconds to about 170 feet above the drop height. Following this, the aircraft was observed descending. It was seen at a very low height above the ground, in a slight left bank, immediately followed by a significant left roll as the left wing struck a tree just before ground impact. The three crewpersons were fatally injured and the aircraft destroyed.
The report’s findings
The ATSB determined from a combination of witness video and real-time position and flight path data, that the aircraft’s climb performance degraded. Subsequently, while at a low height and airspeed, it was likely the aircraft aerodynamically stalled, resulting in a collision with terrain. In the limited time available, the remainder of the fire-retardant load was not jettisoned prior to the aircraft stalling.
As there were only about 10 seconds between the climb performance degrading and the likely stall, there was limited time available for the crew to identify and respond to the situation. Past research shows pilot recognition time of windshear can be expected to be about 5 seconds, and the emergency dump function would take a further 2 seconds. However, in the absence of the cockpit audio recording, it could not be determined if the crew had considered or called for an emergency dump of the remaining load. Therefore, for reasons undetermined, the remaining 25,000 pounds of retardant was not jettisoned during the accident sequence.
The ATSB established that jettisoning the remaining load would have lowered the stall speed and optimised the aircraft’s climb performance. This was also confirmed from the simulator testing. Nonetheless, it was not possible to determine if jettisoning the remaining load, taking into account the time available, and typical recognition and response times, would have prevented the collision with terrain. The outcome of the July 1, 2012 crash in South Dakota of MAFFS 7, a US Air Force C-130 where the crew did jettison the load, is an example of when this action may not be sufficient to avoid a collision with terrain.
Beginning on page 17, the report includes a lengthy discussion about wind shear and mountain waves. It defines wind shear as “a wind direction and/or speed change over a vertical or horizontal distance.”
From the report on page 21:
“The accident aircraft was not fitted with a windshear detection system as it was built in 1981, prior to such technology becoming available. Likewise, the operator’s other C-130 aircraft did not have this system. Retrofitted systems suitable for the C-130 have since become available. However, the operator advised that they had not considered installing these systems into their C-130 fleet. Further, it was not required by regulation or contract to be installed.
“On 10 July 2022, in response to the draft report, Coulson Aviation advised that aerial firefighting operate in very dry environments conducive to active fires. Therefore, with minimal or nil moisture present in the atmosphere it could be concluded that a forward-looking windshear detection system would provide little to no advance warning of a windshear event. They further indicated that their crews were highly experienced in recognising windshear events and crew reaction times would be as timely, if not quicker than a reactive-based system. The operator further advised that this statement was based on ‘rational conclusion’ based on experience supported by informed opinion. The ATSB was unable identify any research that supported this comment.”
While the New South Wales RFS was not an aviation organization or directly responsible for flight safety, they were closely involved in the aerial operation, being responsible for determining the task objectives and selecting aircraft for the task. The ATSB found that the RFS had limited large air tanker policies and procedures for aerial supervision requirements and no procedures for deployment without aerial supervision. In addition, they did not have a policy or procedures in place to manage task rejections, nor to communicate this information internally or to other pilots working in the same area of operation. Such policies and associated procedures would provide frontline personnel with the required steps to effectively and safely manage taskings, and provide guidance for decision-making.
It was also identified that while not applicable to the accident crew, the RFS procedures allowed aircraft operators to determine when pilots were initial attack capable. This was inconsistent with their intention for pilots to be certified by the United States Forest Service certification process.
The ATSB also determined that the New South Wales Rural Fire Service had limited large air tanker policies and procedures for aerial supervision requirements and no procedures for deployment without aerial supervision. The RFS did not have a policy or procedures in place to manage task rejections, nor to communicate this information internally or to other pilots working in the same area of operation.
While not contributing to the accident, the aircraft’s cockpit voice recorder did not record the accident flight and had not worked for weeks or more after having being automatically triggered off by some event during training flights. This resulted in a valuable source of safety information not being available to the investigation, which not only increased the time taken to determine contributing factors to the accident but also limited the extent to which important safety issues could be identified and analysed.
What has been done as a result
As a result of this investigation, Coulson Aviation has incorporated a windshear recovery procedure into their C-130 Airplane Flight Manuals and plan to introduce simulator-based recurrent windshear training. Related to the consideration of risk in aerial firefighting operations, they have also implemented a pre-flight risk assessment to be completed by the pilot in command prior to the first tasking of the day. They will also be introducing a three-tiered risk management approach of organizational risk, operational risk, and tactical/mission risk, to be utilized during the upcoming fire season in Australia. Further, Coulson Aviation has updated their pre-flight procedures to incorporate a cockpit voice recorder system check before each flight. Lastly, the Retardant Aerial Delivery System software was reprogrammed so that the system will not require re-arming between partial load drops where less than 100% was selected.
The ATSB has issued two safety recommendations to Coulson Aviation. These are to further consider:
Fitment of a windshear detection system to their C-130 aircraft to minimise the time taken for crews to recognise and respond to an encounter particularly when operating at low-level and low speed;
Incorporating foreseeable external factors into their pre-flight assessment tool to ensure the overall risk profile of a tasking can be consistently assessed by crews.
The New South Wales Rural Fire Service advised the ATSB that they intend to take the following actions in response to this accident:
Commissioned an independent report into the management of airspace in which aircraft are operating in support of fire-fighting activities;
Formalize and establish a “Large Air Tanker Co-ordinator” role description, to be positioned on the State Air Desk during heightened fire activity;
Undertake an immediate audit, in conjunction with operators, of pilots qualified as initial attack capable and ensure appropriate records are accessible by RFS personnel;
Undertake detailed research to identify best practice (nationally and internationally) relating to task rejection and aerial supervision policies and procedures as well as initial attack training and certification.
Undertake a comprehensive review of RFS aviation doctrine to incorporate outcomes of the above-mentioned research into existing policies and procedures;
Promulgate the revised doctrine detailing the task rejection policies and procedures and aerial supervision requirements to all operational personnel, pilots/aircrew and other key stakeholders. This is to be reinforced at the aviation operators briefing held annually prior to the bushfire season;
Provide the National Aerial Firefighting Centre and national fire-fighting agencies with copies of the updated doctrine relating to these issues.
While the ATSB acknowledges the commitment to undertake reviews and research, at the time of publication the New South Wales Rural Fire Service had not yet committed to adopting any safety action that would reduce the risk associated with the three identified safety issues to an acceptable level. As such, the ATSB has issued three safety recommendations to the RFS to take further action:
To address the absence of policies and procedures for personnel to effectively manage and communicate task rejections on the basis of operational safety concerns;
To address the absence of policies and procedures regarding minimum aerial supervision requirements and the use of initial attack to assist frontline staff with making acceptable risk-based tasking decisions;
To address the ambiguity with the interpretation of “initial attack” in NSW and the Australian Capital Territory Aviation Standard Operating Procedures.
Britton Coulson, Co-President of Coulson Aviation, told Wildfire Today, “We worked very closely with the ATSB to provide them with all the information that they requested. We are pleased that they acknowledged the progress we made with their recommendations.”
Another of the seven C-130 aircraft that the Coast Guard will eventually transfer to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection flew into Sacramento McClellan Airport today. In the Coast Guard it was known as #1709 but will become Air Tanker 120 when the conversion is complete and it is operated by CAL FIRE.
Like some of the other Coast Guard C-130s that have come to McClellan after having work done it appears to have 98 percent new livery, the exception being the rudder. It will eventually receive the other half of the zero to complete the T-120 designation. The delay may have something to do with balancing the rudder after the conversion is largely complete.
We were told there are no obvious external indications of retardant drop doors or a tank having been installed.
Below is what it looked like five years before the transfer and tanker conversion effort for the seven C-130s began in 2013.