Tankers may go back into service
WASHINGTON – Some large air tankers that were grounded over safety concerns could be back fighting fires this summer if their private operators can prove they are safe to fly, federal officials said Wednesday.
The Forest Service grounded the 33-plane fleet last month because it had no way to tell if the aging planes were safe. But officials said Wednesday they have worked with the Federal Aviation Administration to develop guidelines to assess the planes’ airworthiness.
The private companies that operate the military surplus planes will be asked to supply detailed records showing each plane’s flight history, maintenance and other information, said Mark Rey, the agriculture undersecretary who oversees the Forest Service.
Once that information is received, the Forest Service will work with the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board to determine what planes can be returned to service, Rey told the Senate Commerce Committee. Officials canceled $30 million in contracts for use of the large air tankers last month, citing safety concerns after two planes broke up in midair in 2002, killing five people.
Pressed by lawmakers about when the planes could be back in use, Rey said some will probably never return. But others could be returned to service in about 30 days, he said.
Western lawmakers welcomed the possible return of the air fleet but fretted that bureaucratic delays could cause the planes to miss the crucial summer firefighting season.
“Some faceless little person … can give us the run-around and we won’t get the planes off the ground and put out fires,” said Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont.
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., also was dubious.
“The bottom line is, I have no confidence you have any intention to allow these tankers to do their job,” she told Rey, adding that firefighters in California have complained that the Forest Service underestimates the value of large tankers in suppressing wildfires.
In a lengthy rebuke, Boxer told Rey he did “not exhibit the attitude of a can-do person.”
Rey assured Boxer he would put the planes back in the air if they are proven to be safe.
“I will be as can-do as I can be,” he said.
Even if the tankers are not restored, the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have adequate resources to fight fires this summer, Rey said. The two agencies said Tuesday they plan to add nearly 130 more aircraft to their 700-plane fleet as soon as possible.
Private companies will supply up to 48 smaller air tankers, and 71 large and medium-sized helicopters to take up the slack, officials said. Eight military C-130 aircraft also will be used. The extra firefighting help will cost about $66 million.
Mark Timmons, owner of Neptune Aviation Services in Missoula complained that the Forest Service grounded seven of his planes without warning and without ever visiting his company, which he said keeps extensive records and has a top safety record.
Timmons said he and other aircraft companies cannot afford to miss an entire fire season while government officials decide whether their planes are airworthy.
“These companies don’t have the luxury of hanging around for a year, year-and-a-half,” he said, noting that many have already laid off employees and are borrowing to meet payroll.