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Australia is burning:Update.

Relocate to europe? Was in Baden-Wurtimburg unloading some property last august, and there seems to be, in europe, a number of thing writ on the wall in large, dayglo sans-serif, all amounting to storm warnings of bad things at the gates. You may have jumped from the fire into the the malestrom. All in all, I'd take smoke and brush fires over the EUSSR. But, I'm sort of tetchy about communist totalitarianism. Watch your back. Things are, once more, getting weird back in the old country.
Now, I probably get banned for criticizing the Party... :dizzy:
 
Right now large areas are getting hit with thunderstorms, flash flooding, hail and pouring rain (like a month's worth in an hour!) which helps in the fire areas up to a point, but makes it really difficult and highly dangerous because of very slippery surfaces.
And of course, aside from flooding the mudslides are not very helpful!
What is being flushed into the catchments is the stuff of nightmares........:dizzy:
 
A C130 Has gone in near Peak View NSW, close to Canberra - not looking good
"BREAKING: Wreckage of missing RFS C-130 located by search crews. Reports only tail section intact. Aircraft has broken up on impact. Crews reporting difficult terrain and "terrible visibility"

Doesn't sound good for the crew,,,,
 
"Three people have died in a fiery crash involving a C-130 water bombing aeroplane, the Rural Fire Service commissioner, Shane Fitzsimmons, has confirmed
Fitzsimmons has said it took “quite some time” to locate the wreckage of the C-130.
“It’s impacted heavily with the ground and initial reports are that there was a large fireball associated with the impact of the plane as it hit the ground,” he told a press conference. “It is still an active fire ground and it was very difficult to locate the wreckage”.
Coulson Aviation, who have provided water-bombing aircraft to NSW over the past four or five years, have grounded their large air tankers as a precautionary measure.
“Coulsons have grounded their large air tankers this afternoon, and, indeed, as a mark of respect and as welfare for the rest of their crews operating large air tankers here in New South Wales and interstate in Victoria, have grounded the operations pending review to ensure that there’s nothing systemic like a fuel problem or something,” he said. “ We’ve [also] got the military helping us with the evaluation of the fuel to rule that out”.
The owners of Coulson Aviation will fly to Australia from Canada as soon as possible, he said. "

Vale guys......
 
Really sad!
More comprehensive report below.

"Three US crew members were killed when their Large Air Tanker crashed while fighting a bushfire in southern NSW this afternoon

Earlier this afternoon, the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) said it had "lost contact" with a Lockheed C-130 Hercules being used in water bombing operations in the Snowy Monaro area.

Firefighters, emergency services and military personnel launched a search and rescue operation and located the wreckage.
However, RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said all the crew members were "tragically" killed.
"[The aircraft] impacted heavily with the ground and initial reports are that there was a large fireball associated with the impact of the plane as it hit the ground," he said.
Commissioner Fitzsimmons said there was no indication on what caused the accident, but the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) was working to determine what happened.
The C-130 was contracted through American aerial firefighting company Coulson Aviation (USA).


The company has grounded their Large Air Tankers fleet as a precaution and as "a mark of respect".

The grounding of the water bombers by Coulson Aviation will have an immediate impact on aerial firefighting capacity, Commissioner Fitzsimmons said, but he said he said he understood their decision.
"It's absolutely warranted and I support them 100 per cent," he said.
"They are very mindful of the emotional and psychological effect that such a tragedy will have on the rest of their workforce, not just here in Australia but in North America or Canada."
Commissioner Fitzsimmons said all three occupants on the plane were American firefighters, and he extended his deepest sympathies to their families.

"Our hearts are with all those that are suffering in what is the loss of three remarkable, well respected, crew that have invested so many decades of their life into firefighting," he said.

The RFS said the aircraft was engaged in "routine" water bombing activities at the time of the crash.


Flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed the flight path for the C-130 suddenly stopping south of Canberra.

According to its flight data, the aircraft departed RAAF Base Richmond, in western Sydney, about 12:05pm.
However, soon after 2pm the aircraft stopped in an area called Peak View, north-east of Cooma.
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) said the aircraft was brought into Australia in August, 2019 and that it had all the safety approvals required before operating in Australia.

The aviation authority said it had reached out to the its US counterpart, the Federal Aviation Authority, about the incident.

CASA said it would "not be taking any action which will affect aerial firefighting operations".

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the crew members onboard," it said in a statement.
In 2017, the NSW Government invested $38 million over four years for three Large Air Tankers to be used in firefighting efforts.
The aircraft are capable of dumping more than 15,000 litres of water or fire retardant at a time.
The death of the three crew members brings the number of firefighters killed during this bushfire season to eight."

:australia: :canada: :unitedstates: :malaysia: :papuanewguinea: :newzealand:
 
It is truly sad. I was alerted to the incident not long after the initial report had gone out in Australia. The airtanker community was buzzing nearly immediately everyone silently knew who and what aircraft it was. Truly a sad day. I've been checking off and on on our various platforms as the news has gone more public. It's a dangerous profession, one of the most dangerous arguably I'd say. This just adds to the tragedy that is this Bush Fire Season in Australia. Back here in the states, our own aerial firefighting community is in high gear supporting the crew's family as well as Coulson in the wake of this. T-134 (N134CG), the aircraft lost was their latest EC-130Q converted airtanker. T-134 was on it's second fire fighting season in Australia. 3 of Coulson's large airtankers are still in Australia. T-131 (T-390) their other EC-130Q, and T-137 and 138, their 737-300s. Personally, I'm close to the airtanker community without being a pilot or firefighter, being an enthusiast (grew up around it) and fire aviation photographer for years. It's gut wrenching when this happens. I can only imagine how horrible it is for those actually in it. Blue skies and fair winds.
 
This really is a sad tragedy, and my heart goes out to all those left behind, and indeed to the crew that perished. It's just another devastating side effect of the horrible fire season Australia is currently suffering. These guys were doing all they could to help our country and they have paid the ultimate price. They will not be forgotten.
 
Researching the fire attack community as a possible career ,knowing how dangerous it is and this accident brings that point front and center. Condolences to the Coulson team and their families.
 
Victory103 said:
Researching the fire attack community as a possible career ,knowing how dangerous it is and this accident brings that point front and center. Condolences to the Coulson team and their families.
Click to expand...

More damned funerals to go to. The hell of it is, this gig does not have to be dangerous. I did 20 years with a large fire aviation outfit that had not a single fatal or hull loss in that period. Securite Civil, in the same period, on the same equipment, was piling up six fatal's a year.
Culture. The French boys were 'cowboys', and it showed.
Sadly, I could see the handwriting on the wall as the corporate culture changed from 'safety first', to 'safety first, right after profit'.
It was cheaper, apparently, to relax standards, and just collect insurance.
Pen whip endorsements, cut training for pilots and maintainers, switch to 'cheap' single engine tankers and outsource maintenance and spares.
I went out the door. A year latter, they started punching smoking abrasions on mountain sides. The infuriating thing of it is the regulatory body is become a byword for dishonesty, regulatory hijack and pusillanimous cowardice. The Max 8 certification is a stunning example of how badly the regulators are falling down, and it's all to do with the revolving door and smoke filled room. Nobody want's to fkcu their chances of a nice, cushy, senior government job.
These things don't often just 'fall out of the sky'. There is a long chain of events preceding the smoking hole, and the chain can be broken at any time along the way, usually by somebody with an iota of intestinal fortitude saying 'Hold it. No. This is wrong'.
 
lazarus said:
More damned funerals to go to. The hell of it is, this gig does not have to be dangerous. I did 20 years with a large fire aviation outfit that had not a single fatal or hull loss in that period. Securite Civil, in the same period, on the same equipment, was piling up six fatal's a year.
Culture. The French boys were 'cowboys', and it showed.
Sadly, I could see the handwriting on the wall as the corporate culture changed from 'safety first', to 'safety first, right after profit'.
It was cheaper, apparently, to relax standards, and just collect insurance.
Pen whip endorsements, cut training for pilots and maintainers, switch to 'cheap' single engine tankers and outsource maintenance and spares.
I went out the door. A year latter, they started punching smoking abrasions on mountain sides. The infuriating thing of it is the regulatory body is become a byword for dishonesty, regulatory hijack and pusillanimous cowardice. The Max 8 certification is a stunning example of how badly the regulators are falling down, and it's all to do with the revolving door and smoke filled room. Nobody want's to fkcu their chances of a nice, cushy, senior government job.
These things don't often just 'fall out of the sky'. There is a long chain of events preceding the smoking hole, and the chain can be broken at any time along the way, usually by somebody with an iota of intestinal fortitude saying 'Hold it. No. This is wrong'.
Click to expand...

Sounds a lot like the live deer capture operations in New Zealand in the wild and woolly 70's.....when money comes in the door, standards go out the window.....
 
"In the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), the national capital Canberra was blanketed by thick bushfire smoke on New Year's Day from bushfires burning nearby in New South Wales. That day the air quality in the capital was the worst of any city in the world, at around 23 times the threshold to be considered hazardous. Conditions continued the next day, and Australia Post stopped postal deliveries in the ACT to keep workers safe from smoke. The first death directly linked to the poor air quality was also recorded on 2 January. An elderly women had been traveling from Brisbane to Canberra by plane, when she exited the plane onto the smoke-flooded tarmac, she suffered respiratory distress and then died.On 2 January 2020, the ACT declared a state of alert;that was extended on 12 January as the merged Dunns Road fire burnt seven kilometres (four miles) from the Territory's south-west border.

From at least 6 January a bushfire near Hospital Hill in the Namadgi National Park had started; it was extinguished on 9 January.

On 22 January a bushfire started in Pialligo Redwood Forest; it reached emergency level threatening Beard and Oaks Estate. The next day a second bushfire started, the Kallaroo Fire, which later during the day merged with the Redwood Forest fire forming the Beard Fire; the fire jumped the Molonglo River and threatened the suburbs of Beard, Harman and Oaks Estate as it burnt 424 hectares (1,050 acres). Canberra Airport was closed for a day. The fire destroyed 1 facility, 4 outbuildings and 3 vehicles.

On 27 January a bushfire in the Orroral Valley in the Namadgi National Park started. ACT Emergency Services Minister Mick Gentleman reported, on behalf of the Department of Defence, that the fire had been started by a landing light on an ADF helicopter, while it was conducting routine aerial reconnaissance and ground clearance work to support local firefighters. By the morning of 28 January the fire had grown to 2,575 hectares in size and was 9 kilometres from the town of Tharwa. An emergency warning was declared for Tharwa and the southern suburbs of Canberra just after 1:30pm AEST on 28 January. Chief Minister Andrew Barr described the fire as the biggest threat to Canberra since the 2003 Canberra bushfires. At midday on 31 January, Chief Minister Barr declared a state of emergency for the whole ACT, the first time this had occurred since the 2003 fires."

The above sums up the perilous conditions in our National Capitol. When the 'Suburbs' are in the line of fire that is really close to urban Canberra, as we witnessed in 2003.
Despite decent rainfalls fed by tropical cyclones the Fire Season is far from contained.
:dizzy:
 
As of 15:00+/- today (Saturday) the temperature in the ACT was 41C and predicted to remain around that figure for several hours.
The current situation is fluid but extremely volatile and Canberra is under imminent threat.
:kilroy:
 
Just a brief update:

Fires remain burning but at a much lower danger level, quite a number have been contained or even extinguished thanks to extensive rainfall and the ongoing work of CFS and RFS.
However..............the rainfall has brought large areas of flooding!
Just to compound the felony the Tropical Cyclone season may well have been a late starter but it is now underway and hitting the North West hard.

So in addition to fires we have floods and cyclones.

:banghead:
 
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