It all begins with a call to the Fire Center in Fort Smith from a look-out tower, the public or an aircraft, reporting a fire somewhere in the NWT.  Personnel in the Fire Centre then proceed to map and asses the possible fire and calculate it’s hazard level in respect to man and nature.  If the fire is not deemed a threat, it is monitored and allowed to burn, commencing a natural rejuvenating process for the forest.  However, if the fire is considered a threat, a call is made to the closest available tanker base and aircraft are dispatched to the fire.

The first aircraft to depart is the Birddog aircraft, a smaller airplane carrying the pilot and an Air Attack Officer.  These two people form the Birddog team and have the responsibility to assess the fire for hazards and formulate a plan of attack.  This is all coordinated with the Fire Boss on the ground at the fire and/or through the District Fire Center in the nearest community via FM radio.  In the meantime, the tanker(s) depart and proceed to the fire location as well.  While enroute, the Air Tanker pilots maintain a listening watch on the bombing frequencies and make contact with the Birddog aircraft for instructions on how the fire is going to be fought.  If the Air Tanker is a Canadair CL-215 or a PBY Canso, the flight crews also begin searching for a lake close to the fire where they would be able to pickup (scoop) water for their drops.  The DC-4 is strictly a Retardant Tanker, so it is loaded with a red-colored fire retardant, or ‘mud’, before it leaves the Tanker Base.

Safety is foremost.  To ensure the highest possible level of safety is maintained at all times, the birddog aircraft examines the terrain closely, watching for ground crews and/or hazards along the intended water or retardant drop path.  As the actual Air Tankers are slower and slightly less-maneuverable, these inspection runs by the Birddog are extremely important.

Once the Birddog team has formulated their plan of attack and assessed the area, instructions are passed to the air tankers so they may start their drops.  Fire retardant carried by the DC-4 is usually dropped just ahead of the fire to slow it down.  The water dropped from CL-215s and Cansos however, is usually dropped right on the fire in order to cool it down.  Depending on the size of the fire and availability of aircraft, all three types of Air Tankers sometimes work fires together.

The air tankers knock the fire down to a size that can be attacked by the ground crews.  It takes the effort of these hardworking ground crews to ensure beyond a doubt that the fire is out.  Aircraft can only help to control a fire and reduce it’s size so that ground crews will not be put in danger fighting fires that are beyond their means.  

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