AFMC Command News

C-130s stage at Kirtland AFB to answer firefighting call

  • Published
  • By Mara Minwegen
  • 377th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  The rancher fearing for his livestock or the people living in developed areas along the boundary of a fire probably don't realize the massive effort and the number of personnel supporting the C-130 they see dropping salvation from the sky, but cooperation among military members and civilians can save acres and lives when wildfires occur.

Two military C-130s equipped with the Modular Airborne Firefighting System arrived on Kirtland late March 16 and were placed on standby at the air tanker base operated by the Cibola National Forest. MAFFS is a modular unit designed to be inserted into a C-130 to drop up to 2,700 gallons of fire retardant or water.

"The MAFFS mission providing additional airborne firefighting capability to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service is a cooperative effort between military, civilian, local, state, federal and tribal agencies. All of our efforts are directed to the protection and safeguarding of people and property whenever we fly. Our Air National Guard aircrews and maintenance personnel are ready to deploy anywhere in the United States throughout the annual fire season," Air National Guard Lt. Col. Jeff Perryman, MAFFS mission commander, 145th Airlift Wing, North Carolina ANG, said.

The aircraft and trained crew were supplied by the 145th Airlift Wing of the North Carolina National Guard from Charlotte to support initial attack activity in New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado.

If a fire escalates to the point where they're needed, they can be loaded and ready to fly in about two hours, said ANG Lt. Col. Rick Gibson, MAFFS liaison for the ANG.

MAFFS has been in operation for over 30 years, and may be used more this year because of the combination of severe fire danger and the reduced availability of civilian tankers, he said. ANG and Air Force Reserve units with MAFFS capabilities are usually activated for 30 days.

"We take our job seriously and know that our best efforts mean people on the ground will have homes, businesses and lives to return to after a wildfire incident," Colonel Perryman said.

The use of military tankers aircraft in conjunction with MAFFS involves a series of steps beginning with the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise Idaho making the decision that MAFFS is required. Northern Command and Transportation Command are also involved, along with Air Mobility Command. They coordinate with ANG and Air Force Reserve units.