Aspen Fire Sierra National Forest July 2013

[Aaronw]

Erickson Skycrane making a drop. Built for the military during the Vietnam war the (then) Sikorsky CH-54 later found use in the civilian world as a logger. In the late 1990s the Skycrane was adopted for wildland firefighting where it has found wide international use. Erickson was an early user of the aircraft, and they eventually bought the type certification from Sikorsky allowing them to build new airframes.

 

This is an Erickson owned Skycrane which uses a 2600 gallon tank. It can hover above a lake or river refilling from the large snorkel hanging below the aircraft.