Interagency Aviation Strategy - July 2008 - National Wildfire ...

establishing a national air attack program, adjusting the Aerial Supervision Module
program from lease-based to government-owned and re-energizing the Infrared program.
Other functional aviation programs show modest increases or essentially flat programs
over time. All programs require intensive, and in some cases centralized management in
to provide a safe and effective result.
Initial attack will remain the priority use for aviation resources. However, support to
large fire operations will be common.
Aircraft that can perform multiple missions (retardant delivery, smokejumping, passenger
transport) should be given strong consideration when purchasing new aircraft. These
multi-purpose aircraft can increase efficiency and lower cost by eliminating the need for
separate platforms.
Generally, contracting aviation resources on an exclusive use basis will result in greater
savings than acquiring on a call-when-needed basis. This is because the vendor has a
guarantee of work and a defined period of time over which to amortize costs under
exclusive use contracts. In some cases, money is saved by having the government own
aircraft. This can be evaluated by the OMB Exhibit 300, Capital Asset Plan and Business
Case process or other analysis tools.
The following table summarizes the aviation program numbers and associated estimated
costs for the next 10 years.
Table 1: FEDERAL FIREFIGHTING AIRCRAFT FLEET PROJECTION SUMMARY-
NO CWN
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Large Airtankers* 19 19 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 30 32
Water Scooper 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
SEAT 21 21 27 28 34 35 35 35 35 35 35
ASM 15 17 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
ATGS 20 20 22 22 23 23 24 24 25 25 25
Smokejumper 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19
Helicopter T1 34 34 34 34 34 34 34 34 34 34 34
Helicopter T2 42 44 45 46 47 47 47 47 47 47 47
Helicopter T3 100 101 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100
Infra-Red 2 2 2 2 2
Large Transport 1 1 1 1 1
Total
Aircraft/YR 272 278 291 294 303 302 304 305 307 310 312
*The number of LAT's includes residual aircraft currently in the fleet and the procurement of new aircraft. These
numbers are estimated based on expected retirements of current aircraft.
Fire related aviation resources are a small niche in the overall commercial aviation
community. While it is a critical need for wildland fire agencies, we often compete
against other work opportunities available to aviation contractors. Wildland fire aviation
programs are typically costly. Recognizing the characteristics of fire and aviation
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