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.

FMI: www.eurocopter.com, www.interieur.gouv.fr/sections/a_votre_service/metiers_et_concours/securite_civile (in French)