Firefighters in California are fighting the historic fires from the air using a variety of efficient specialized aircraft that dump water and fire retardants in the sky Los Angeles.

The state’s fleet includes tactical aircraft, aerial tankers and helicopters. All personnel have specific roles and abilities but work together as a unit to extinguish the fires that have raged since Tuesday and Thursday. 10 lives taken and burned tens of thousands of acres.

The fleet has more than 60 aircraft and helicopters, making it the largest fleet of aerial firefighting equipment owned by a department in the world, according to Cal Fire’s website. Its fleet operates from 14 airports and 11 helicopter bases across the state and can reach most fires in about 20 minutes.

A Super Scooper aircraft drops water on the Palisades Fire on Tuesday, January 7, 2025, in Pacific Palisades, California. (Brian Vanderbrugg/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Experts: Grid failures surge ahead of Los Angeles wildfires

The tactical aircraft usually leads the tanker, which provides directions and coordinates to the tankers and firefighters on the ground. According to Reuters, most of Cal Fire’s tactical aircraft are North American Rockwell OV-10 twin-turboprop multi-mission aircraft, which were in service with the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force until the 1990s.

Cal Fire tankers then dropped the retardant onto the terrain below.

The Grumman S-2T tanker, equipped with two turboprop engines, is the agency’s workhorse and can hold approximately 1,200 gallons of retardant. Cal Fire also operates larger C-130 Hercules four-engine turboprop aircraft that can dump about 3,000 gallons per load.

Cal Fire operates a fleet of helicopters, including Bell UH-1H Super Hueys and Sikorsky S70i Black Hawk helicopters. These helicopters can carry water in buckets suspended below the aircraft to extinguish the flames.

John Mixson, retired United States Coast Guard The helicopter search-and-rescue commander told Fox Digital News that the buckets, known as “Bambi buckets,” can accurately drip water.

“They can go to any lake or reservoir and be able to lower a bucket into the water and drop the payload precisely. So it’s a little more accurate than a fixed wing, but it’s a little less inhibitory or water-intensive,” Mixson explain.

“Helicopters can carry enough water to put out a fire, of course, depending on the size of the fire. They can also saturate the ground to prevent the fire from spreading. The size of the buckets depends on the helicopter’s ability to carry water, some are only about 70 gallons, some are then more than 2,000 gallons.”

Helicopters drop water on the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills area of ​​Los Angeles on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (Ethan Swope/AP)

Help those affected by the California wildfires here

Two Air Canada CL-415 Super Scooper turboprop aircraft have also been deployed to combat the deadly blaze.

The Pentagon said on Friday that two military C-130 Hercules aircraft equipped with firefighting systems have now arrived at the scene, Military.com reported.

Six more C-130 aircraft are expected to be ready on Sunday. Some aircraft have to be retrofitted with fire protection systems because they are used for cargo. The fire occurred outside of the traditional firefighting season.

this shovel aircraft Refill the tank by descending to calm water and skimming across the water to load the tank. They then release water to extinguish the fire and repeat the process until refueling is needed.

Frank Papalia, a former New York City Fire Department lieutenant and fire safety expert with Global Security, said super forklifts have been loading brine from the Pacific Ocean, although this is fairly rare and usually avoided because it Can damage equipment, infrastructure and wildlife. group told Fox Digital News.

Whenever possible, fresh water is preferred because salt is corrosive and can damage equipment such as hoses and pumps.

Basic phone numbers for Los Angeles area residents and how you can help

On January 9, 2025, aircraft brought water from the ocean to extinguish fires in the Palisades Mountains. (Sandy Hooper/Imag)

“In this case, your city is burning down, so using salt water is not that bad,” he told Fox News Digital.

Also, fire hydrants do not use salt water because they are not resistant to corrosion, but fire trucks can use salt water. They just need to be close enough to get to it and then it needs to be thoroughly cleaned.

Flame retardants are not poured directly into fire. Instead, chemicals are thrown in front of a fire to direct it or slow its advance, giving ground crews a chance to contain or extinguish the fire. Fire retardants can also be released to protect homes or important sites and keep roads clear.

The substance is usually made from a mixture water, Fertilizer, thickener and red dye. The red dye was added so firefighters could see the retardant in the landscape.

California wildfires have been raging for the fifth consecutive day, the death toll continues to rise, and personnel are evacuated again

The pilots who flew these aircraft were called aerial firefighting pilots or water bombers.

Mixon said the pilots come from a variety of backgrounds, but many have previously served in the military.

They typically must receive specialized training for their respective type of aircraft to handle its unique features and systems. Most aerial firefighting pilots have years of flying experience before taking to the skies in a firefighting aircraft.

According to Hillsboro Aero Academy in Oregon, becoming a helicopter pilot requires accumulating 1,500 to 4,000 hours of helicopter flight time as a pilot in command (PIC) (the pilot responsible for the safety and operation of the aircraft).

Flight time equips aspiring pilots with important knowledge about aircraft systems, mission training and fire behavior, and candidates need to demonstrate they can operate firefighting helicopters in challenging conditions such as mountainous areas. They also need technical skills to work closely with ground crews and other aircraft during missions, as well as knowledge of how fires spread and how to use aircraft to control them.

An oil tanker drips flame retardant as the Palisades Fire spreads in Topanga Hills, California, on January 9, 2025. (David Swanson/AFP via Getty Images)

For future fixed-wing aircraft pilots, the hours are similar.

“Crews are rigorously trained for that particular mission,” Mixon said. “This is not a secondary mission for Cal Fire personnel or any Department of Defense or Forest Service fire personnel. It’s like the U.S. Coast Guard. , their work is very, very professional.

“It’s very dangerous, very challenging, but they’re also very, very highly trained for specific tasks.”

Click here to get the Fox News app

Mixon said one of the most obvious dangers is at lower elevations above hilly terrain in high wind conditions, which is what they’re dealing with now.

Mixson noted that through the smoke, these crews must also avoid daily hazards such as other aircraft, terrain and radio towers.

High Santa Ana winds prevented the deployment of firefighting aircraft earlier this week due to safety risks.

At the same time, a drone Hit one of Canada’s super forkliftsalso. The impact left a fist-sized hole in the water and the plane’s wing fell off. There were no reports of injuries. Cal Fire said the plane was expected to be back in the air on Monday.

Reuters contributed to this report.