Quote:Interesting... I knew their was a USFS Base in Boulder but their was no Aircraft there when I was in town. Do you know where the other USFS Facilities are?
USFS resources are regularly on the move between locations and states based on severity. It was pretty rainy when you were here which is probably why there weren't any tankers. The base near Boulder at the Rocky Mountain Airport has been closed as of this year.
Here are the wildland bases / locations...
Ft. Collins / Loveland Airport - USFS Tanker Base & Colorado SEAT Base
Walker Field Grand Junction - USFS Tanker Base
Durango / La Plata Airport - USFS Tanker Base
Pueblo Memorial Airport - Part time USFS Tanker Base (activated when needed)
Monument / El Paso County - Helitack
Dinosaur National Monument - Helitack
Rifle Airbase - Helitack
Cortez Airport - Colorado SEAT Base
Buckley Air Force Base - National Guard Helitack
Peterson Air Force Base - National Guard Helitack
Castle Rock - Rampart Helitack (Private company contracted to Douglas County)
Our elected officials are proposing the following...
- Increase the number of Single Engine Air Tankers (SEAT) on exclusive use contracts from two to four.
- Contract for the exclusive use of four Type 3 or larger rotor-wing aircraft. (Type 3 helicopters can carry 100 to 300 gallons.)
- Contract for the exclusive use of two Type 2 or larger air tankers. (Type 2 air tankers can carry 1,800 to 3,000 gallons). The contingency, if the State is unable to contract for two air tankers, is to contract for two helitankers, or a combination of one fixed-wing air tanker and one helitanker.