More of Neptune Aviation‘s BAe 146 air tankers have been activated, bringing to six the number of tankers currently in service. T-40 (msn E2049) was supposed to participate in the AirVenture airshow in Oshkosh, but on the morning of her scheduled departure she was activated and instead of flying east […]
Neptune Aviation‘s BAe 146 are gradually going back to work as the 2019 fire season ‘heats up’. T-16 (msn E2074) was the first back in action, on 7 March. She was followed by T-40 (msn E2049) on 3 April, then T-15 (msn E2103) on 8 May and most recently T-01 (msn […]
Neptune Aviation started its 2019 fire season on 7 March. The honor of dropping the first load of the year fell to BAe 146-200 air tanker T-16 (msn E2074), on the Benton fire in the Coronado national forest, along the US-Mexico border. She then spent the night in Silver City, […]
Neptune Aviation Services in installing automatic dependent surveillance broadcast (ABS-B) on its fleet of nine BAe 146 air tankers. Installation of ADS-B Out avionics, which continuously broadcast an aircraft’s position to air traffic controllers, with an accuracy of as little as one meter, is mandatory by the end of 2019, […]
Conair‘s Avro RJ85AT N366AC (msn E2288) returned to Canada at the completion of its contract to operate for the NSW Rural Fire Service during the southern summer fire season. In Australia, she had operated as Tanker 363. She departed Richmond, where she had been based since November, on 9 January, […]
Conair‘s Avro RJ85 air tanker C-GFVK (msn E2268), who has been operating in New South Wales as Tanker 165 Boomer, is moving to neighboring Victoria, where she will operate as Tanker 391. Boomer had been operating for the NSW Rural Fire Service since September, but was loaned to the Queensland […]
The USFS issued a new solicitation for “up to five” large air tankers on 3 December. While previous such exclusive-use contracts had generally been multi-year contracts, this solicitation would be for one-year contracts, with options to renew for up to four more years. This approach, which is driven by budget […]
The last two BAe 146 air tankers of Neptune Aviation Services arrived home on 28 November, at the completion of another long fire season. Tankers 02 (msn E2084) and 15 (msn E2103) were the last to remain on call, their fleet mates having returned the previous week. Both were were […]
Conair now has no less than three of its Avro RJ85 air tankers operating in Australia. The most recent arrival is N366AC/Tanker 363 (msn E2288). She departed Abbotsford in 24 November, routing via Oakland, Honolulu, and Honiara, and arrived in Richmond on 28 November. She will operate as Tanker 163 […]
Conair‘s two Avro RJ85 air tankers operating in Australia, C-GFVK/Tanker 165 Boomer (msn E2268) and C-GVFT/Tanker 166 Hunter (msn E2253), were deployed to Queensland on 27 November to help fight raging wildfires in that state. The two air tankers had been operating in New South Wales, Tanker 165 Boomer since September […]
