The devastation of the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires resulted in long-term changes to aerial firefighting methods, according to Coulson Aviation CEO Wayne Coulson.
The aircraft will serve NSW’s rapid aerial response for regional communities in the state and other emergency services such as search and rescue missions.
Two firefighting aircraft due to aid in Victoria’s bushfire efforts this season are yet to be delivered months into the bushfire season, and despite raging fires on the Victoria/South Australia border.
Fireball founder Christopher Tylor said he’s in discussions to use the state as a test case for his innovation, which uses a combination of satellites and sensors to spot blazes before they can grow out of control.
Adelaide-based company FireFlight Technologies has created a system that uses thermal imaging sensors mounted to a manned aircraft, to detect flames through kilometres of thick and billowing smoke, and accurately track a fire’s path.
The former Deputy Commissioner of Fire & Rescue NSW, Jim Smith, said “not much seems to have been done” a year to the day since the bushfire royal commission report was published.
