CO Fire Officials Strike Airtanker Deal

Aug. 15 -- Colorado fire officials gained one more tool to battle wildland fires thanks to an agreement with a California company refurbishing anti-submarine military planes.

The Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control will be able to call up firefighting airtankers when needed after signing an agreement with Airstrike Firefighters. The planes are the closest thing to a airtanker purposely built for aerial firefighting, according to news release from the division.

The P-3 Orions have four engines and can carry 3,000 gallons of retardant. They can travel at speeds up to 300 mph and fly at the low altitudes necessary for precise firefighting techniques, according to the company’s website.

“This new agreement ensures that we could have the appropriate suppression resources available to protect the citizens of the State of Colorado for years to come,” Vince Welbaum, the division’s aviation unit chief, said in the news release. “The P-3 Orion is a proven aerial asset that can operate efficiently in our high-altitude and high-temperature conditions.”

The Sacramento-based company is refurbishing a fleet of seven airtankers to be used by state and federal firefighting agencies. The U.S. Navy built approximately 750 of the planes in the 1960s primarily to hover close to water and fight submarines. Now, they are also used to for surveillance and to chase storms to collect weather data.

Five of the 20 largest fires in Colorado history ignited in 2018. Fire officials predicted that the 2018 season could be the worst since 2013 due to low snowpack levels and dry conditions across the state.

Firefighting agencies in the state have bolstered their aerial tools since the 2013 season, including purchasing two planes and signing contracts for access to two helicopters and two single-engine tankers.

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