CHARLOTTE, N.C., - Three Air National Guard units in conjunction with the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), will conduct annual Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) training at the South Carolina Technology and Aviation Center in Greenville, S.C., from April 24 until May 1.
Throughout the annual recertification, military pilots flying C-130 airplanes will conduct up to 80 practice flights per day, dropping water on target sites on national forests in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.
The training will consist of up to 400 military and civilian personnel, including both classroom and flight training for military flight crews, civilian lead plane pilots and various support personnel. MAFFS support specialists and aviators from the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Indian Affairs, North Carolina Forest Service, and California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection will lead the week-long training.
MAFFS is a partnership between federal land management agencies and the military to provide supplemental air tankers to assist in fire suppression efforts nationwide during times of high fire activity. The system itself is a portable fire retardant delivery system that can be easily inserted into military C-130 aircraft, converting the vessel into an air tanker when the civilian fleet is fully committed.
The slide-in MAFFS units can drop up to 3,000 gallons of retardant per run on wildfires. The retardant is dropped ahead of a fire to slow its spread. Its bright red color helps the pilots determine the accuracy of their drops. The retardant contains a fertilizer, which helps promote new plant growth following the fire season.
The four MAFFS-designated military units must perform refresher training each spring before the start to wild-land fire season. There are two units assigned to each of the four military wings, with a total of eight aircraft available for supporting civilian agencies if necessary.
Military personnel involved in the training include air and ground personnel from the 153rd Airlift Wing of the Wyoming Air National Guard (ANG) based in Cheyenne Wyoming, the 145th Air Wing of the North Carolina ANG based in Charlotte, N.C., the 146th Air Wing of the California ANG, Port Hueneme, Calif., and the 302nd Airlift Wing of the Air Force Reserves from Colorado Springs, Colo.
Congress established the authority for the MAFFS program in the early 1970's to support wildland firefighting through an agreement with the U.S. Forest Service. The military aircraft are requested by NIFC and activated through the U.S. Northern Command, based on an agreement with the Department of Defense. The most recent MAFFS mission was conducted in June 2008.