Summer wildfires, such as the 2003 Paradise Fire that blackened much of San Diego County, may be prevented if firefighters have access to the DC-10 Super Tanker, whose flying demonstration drops here at Le Bourget.
Frederick “Rick” Hatton, president of Cargo Conversions LLC, an engineering firm in San Carlos, California, says his Super Tanker’s ability to dump 45,000-plus liters of water on wildfires in eight seconds temporarily changes local humidity and temperature, as well as extinguishes flames, thereby preventing flashbacks.
“This is the environmentally friendly acceptable way to fight fires from air tankers,” Hatton said. Pure water, as a firefighting agent, has no environmental downside. In contrast, borate fire-extinguishing compounds have long-term negative effects on native plant and animal species. Water also is less expensive than borate, which can cost up to $1 per gallon.
Hatton’s Super Tanker conversion group 10 Tanker STC, LLC has been working on the program for two years with extensive inputs from the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. The firm bought a well-used DC-10-10 from American Airlines with 67,000 hours on the airframe and moved it to Southern California Logistics Airport (née George AFB) at Victorville, California, for modifications. Then, they reinforced the airframe to hold the belly tank and drop system, with assistance from Aircraft Technical Service and Erickson Air-Crane. An FAA STC for the conversion is planned for July.
The aircraft may be fully loaded with 45,000 liters of water in eight minutes and it has a 500-nmi operating radius. Without water, the aircraft has a 3,000-nmi ferry range at 0.72 to 0.74 Mach owing to the belly tank’s drag. Hatton believes that a fleet of five tankers, strategically based in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida and Washington, virtually could respond to any probable wildfire in the U.S. in one hour. The aircraft can drop all of its load in eight seconds or make multiple, partial drops.
Hatton envisions leasing DC-10 Super Tankers to public service agencies for about $40,000 per day, plus $10,000 per operating hour, not including fuel. For more information, contact Rick Hatton at (650) 637-1803. —Fred George
