Water Bomber Helicopter To Be Given Trial By Fire
Following the dramatic
fire season in 2003, and in order to reinforce current firefighting
operations in Corsica, the French Interior Ministry recently rented
a big helicopter with a large watercarrying capacity.
After acquiring its twelfth Canadair CL 415 and integrating two
large Dash 8 water bombers in the "Sécurité Civile"
fleet, the French Interior Ministry pooled state resources to come
up with a new plan of action for the 2007 firefighting season.
Trials will be conducted in partnership with the Interior
Ministry's Civil Defense and Security Directorate and Eurocopter.
With the permission of the French Defense Ministry, an EC 725
helicopter from the 1/67 "Pyrénées" squadron will be
stationed in Corsica during July and August on the
“Sécurité Civile” base in Bastia.
Eurocopter will fit a water jettison kit with a capacity of four
metric tons on the helicopter.
In service in the French Air Force since May 2006, the EC 725
has already seen duty in Lebanon and Afghanistan. The EC 725 will
be operated by and under the responsibility of Eurocopter flight
crews and assistance teams. "Sécurité Civile"
representatives will monitor the trials.
In the first phase of the trials, the flight crew will open up
the flight envelope, testing the helicopter's flight behavior in
its water bomber configuration. The second phase will evaluate the
helicopter from an operational standpoint. In this phase, due to
start on July 14, the EC 725 will intervene directly to fight
fires, initially in support of other firefighting aircraft.
The helicopter will
subsequently operate under the control of "Sécurité
Civile" fires fighting plan.
In its water bomber configuration, the EC 725 can also be used
to transport 8 to 10 firefighters in emergency situations or twenty
or so firefighters in its transport configuration. Eurocopter says
the EC 725 will also be able to demonstrate its operational
flexibility and its capability to get to the scene quickly,
possibly highlighted by interventions in mainland France, if
necessary.
The helicopter will operate without its military equipment, to
validate the new concept of a water bomber helicopter in real-life
conditions.
Compared to the Puma helicopter tried out for firefighting
operations about 15 years ago, the EC 725 is a new generation
helicopter fitted with a jettison system comprising a flexible
4000-liter tank attached to the cabin floor, and a system of
hatches underneath the fuselage to empty the tank.
The cabin part of the water bomber kit can be installed and
removed in less than 20 minutes, proof of the EC 725's water
bomber/transport flexibility.
The tank can be pumped full with the helicopter in hovering
flight. If the trials prove satisfactory, the water bomber system
could be certified by late 2007.