Evil Twin wrote:Ya know if I had access to funding I’d be doing like others and buying up old blackhawks and converting them to fire fighting assets. There is a global market outside of the Australian fire season and there’s profit to be made. Would be good to see an enterprising state organisation like RFS getting these assets to pay some of their own way in other hot(pardon the pun) spots through the year.
Only issue with Aussie modified helicopters are that most of the mods are done by way of EO and not STC. As a result the fire agencies (eg USFS) won’t approve/card an aircraft to operate on fires or other government contracts unless the mods have an STC.
That’s why you still see some aircraft running around in the US with old snorkel pumps on s simplex tank, as the STC hasn’t caught up to the new pumps from KAWAK etc