California Air National Guard Aerial Fire Fighting C-130J Drops Retardant on Trout & Long Fire

California Air National Guard personnel and MAFFS (Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System) aircrew Capt. Cameron Sheppard and Maj. Nate Southwick and Capt. Tyler Henry, with the 115th Airlift Squadron, Channel Islands Air National Guard Station, follows a U.S. Forest Service lead plane as they perform a fire retardant drop from inside the flight deck of a MAFFS-equipped C-130J Super Hercules above the 'Trout Fire' in Tulare County California, July 15, 2024. These C-130 aircraft are equipped with the U.S. Forest Service's MAFFS, which can drop up to 3,000 gallons of fire retardant in less than 10 seconds across a quarter-mile line. Department of Defense C-130s such as these can be converted into airtankers and provide a critical "surge" capability that can be used to bolster wildfire suppression efforts when commercial airtankers are fully committed or not readily available.
California Air National Guard personnel and MAFFS (Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System) aircrew Maj. Nate Southwick and Capt. Tyler Henry, with the 115th Airlift Squadron, Channel Islands Air National Guard Station, follows a U.S. Forest Service lead plane as they perform a fire retardant drop from inside the flight deck of a MAFFS-equipped C-130J Super Hercules above the 'Long Fire' in Tulare County California, July 17, 2024. At the request of the National Interagency Fire Center, U.S. Northern Command deployed two C-130 aircraft equipped with Modular Airborne Fire Fighting Systems (MAFFS) from California and Colorado for wildland firefighting operations from Channel Islands Air National Guard Station in Port Hueneme, California, over multiple fires in California.
(U.S. Air National Guard Videos by Tech. Sgt. Richard Guiterrez and Tech. Sgt. John Toledo)
(U.S. Air National Guard Video by Tech Sgt. Sean Silver)

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