Thread: All 2019/20 bushfire comments here.

Originally Posted by Old Farang

Anybody know how the operators are keeping up the maintenance on the aircraft involved? A lot of them must be away from their normal base and ground facilities. In particular the Aircrane helicopter needs regular daily servicing that is more then the pilots can do. The fixed wing aircraft may have lessor requirements, but as a former owner and operator of helicopters I am interested how they cope.

Another thing that really got my attention was a couple of Ag aircraft on floats picking up water while barrelling down a lake! With cojones like that I am surprised that there was any space left for water!

Originally Posted by RANDLOVER

I'd say they travel with pilots, maintenance and even catering crew if any thing like the Coulson Mars (Martin) water bombers I saw on an episode of "Mighty Planes" and the co's website refers to staffing near the bottom. The Coulson Group of Companies – forestry, aviation and lumber manufacturing

On the subject of the Aircrane, Jack Erickson leased a few and liked them so much he bought the licence and started building them that's why they are no longer known as Sikorsky Aircranes.

Erickson Inc - Wikipedia.

Last Friday there seemed to be a large team of people fussing around "Gypsy Lady" at Moruya airport. From a distance it looked to my untrained eye to be some sort of servicing. It seemed to be more than simply refuelling.

Originally Posted by V8Ian

Des, discussion of the fires in GC is totally acceptable. Moderation only occurred when the thread turned political.
Current Affairs is, in reality, contentious affairs, not being restricted to current events.

Where did it turn political?

Originally Posted by bob10

Where did it turn political?

I’ve deleted the 13 offending posts after they were reported and discussed amongst the Mods.

Ex military helping out . Team Rubicon.


Former military 'grey-shirted angels' Team Rubicon leave their mark as Willawarrin rises from the ashes - ABC Rural - ABC News

The Far Saracen, a Norwegian flagged cargo ship, used to deliver cargo to oil and gas platforms, crewed by Australians and New Zealanders, first to Mallacoota, one day before the ADF.

Praise for crew of the Far Saracen cargo ship that answered Mallacoota's bushfires SOS

Smoke from the fires has reached South America.


Smoke from Australia fires reaches South America | News | DW | 07.01.2020

​FAR SARACEN - Anchor Handling Vessel (IMO: 9417842, MMSI ...


The far Saracen. Official description - anchor handling vessel. They use these vessels to anchor oil & gas rigs to the ocean floor. Those anchors are huge. We berthed alongside one of these ships when on an Attack class patrol boat out of Darwin, Dampier or Hedland, not sure which now. It would be only a slight exageration to say the anchor was as big as our boat. The reason I wanted to confirm what type of vessel it is was this. How come they could do it, and the Navy couldn't?;

"

"They worked tirelessly looking after sick people, the elderly, infants, even special needs teenagers," said Mr Nairey."

This is interesting in how to actually carry out hazard burning using indigenous practices which benefit the area, rather than just a destructive 'light her up' approach. We could learn a lot from indigenous practices, I think.

There's been 'huge interest' in Indigenous fire practices, experts say — this is how they work
Indigenous fire practices have been used to quell bushfires for thousands of years, experts say - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)