McMINNVILLE, Ore. -- The first jumbo jet converted for use as a tanker in fighting forest fires could be ready for service by July, an aviation company said.
The Boeing 747 could carry 20,000 gallons of water or fire retardant, 10 times as much as a conventional propeller tanker, Evergreen International Aviation said Thursday.
The jet was converted over the past year and has made about 50 test flights in Arizona, the McMinnville, Ore.-based company said. The jet still needs approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.
"It represents one of the most advanced pieces of firefighting equipment that's come along in a long time," said Mike Padilla, chief of aviation for the California Department of Firefighting Protection, which hopes to test the jet for its needs this summer.
The U.S. Forest Service recently grounded its 33 largest tankers because of safety concerns after two crashed in 2002. Some members of Congress are trying to get at least some of the tankers restored, but the Forest Service is eager to update the aging fleet.
Federal agencies have not said whether they will use the jumbo jet this summer, or even if they could afford it. Evergreen has not decided on a price for the plane, which it said cost millions of dollars to convert.
Evergreen officials said they don't intend the plane to replace other tankers but rather to be a new tool for fighting the largest fires.
Penn Stohr, Evergreen's chief of supertanker operations, said the company is preparing to set up operations at airports around the country that could serve as bases for the big tanker.
