Above The Fireline

Above The Fireline Aircraft, their crews, and the mission behind wildland fire aviation. Not an account for fire updates.

09/03/2026

Mount Emma Fire. A remote stretch on the north end of Grand Canyon National Park — only accessible by air.

Eighteen Boise smokejumpers on the ground. Full suppression, retardant approved. A mix of direct and indirect retardant line depending on what the terrain and fire behavior allowed.

Tanker 914 — the Big Juicy — opens it up. The second half is just flying the line low, checking the retardant coverage and fuels ahead of the fire. No shortcuts in country this remote. You verify what you can see.

09/01/2026

The platform. 0FD is a 1977 Aero Commander 690B — Twin Commander to those who know it, air attack to everyone else.

Twin turboprops. Cruises up to 280 knots to get there. Once on the fire, we’re working at 2,500 feet above ground level — low, slow, and in the mix.

Originally built as a corporate transport. Fire aviation took it and turned it into something else entirely. High wing, large windows, exceptional visibility — it was made for this job before anyone knew it would do this job.

Two seats up front. Pilot on the left. The ATGS in the right seat — coordinating the tankers, the helicopters, the working with the ground crews, and everything else happening over the fire. The platform is the office.

This one has been around since 1977. Still earning its keep.

08/27/2026

Tanker 914 — the Big Juicy — 19 seconds of retardant on the Wildhorse Fire. Coverage level 2, end of day. That’s what a VLAT looks like when it goes to work.

08/23/2026

Keeping them small while other parts of Nevada are dealing with something much bigger. Initial attack working the way it’s supposed to.

08/12/2026

Some days the platform needs a break too. High cycle operations, smoky conditions, low-altitude work — these aircraft take a beating over the course of a season. The maintenance crews that keep them flying don’t get enough credit.

07/31/2026

The still putting up a fight. We threw 7 LATs and 3 rotors at it, all in support of the crews trying to contain that flank.

Tomorrow’s another day.

07/28/2026

The Great Basin is still busy.

Tanker 914 laying big line on the . The Big Juicy earning its keep — one pass from a DC-10 VLAT changes the math on a fire fast.

07/17/2026

Just like that, the quiet evening was disturbed. The order is to the south of Boise.


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