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Yosemite Rim Fire

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Tue Aug 27, 2013 11:53 am

Yosemite Rim Fire

Here's a good video that shows what the big borate bombers are dealing with as they help fight the Yosemite Rim Fire. I can't imagine handling the change in trim and performance as the aircraft drops its load of fire retardant. For the DC-10 fire bombers, that can mean losing 99,960 pounds of water (12.000 gallons) in 8 seconds! Shedding that much weight all at once must be a bear to deal with in the cockpit! No discernible change in attitude is noticeable in the video, but the video might be from the lead-in aircraft, not the tanker. The size of the fire is sobering!

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/08/27/216036318/stunning-video-pilots-view-of-californias-rim-fire
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Tue Aug 27, 2013 12:35 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

It's a monster. I think we've got most of the smoke here in the Washoe valley.
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Tue Aug 27, 2013 12:54 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

Beautiful video and a great perspective on the fire. Massive is almost an understatement.

The text says the video is from a C-130J tanker, you can see the lead plane mark the drop with smoke. Cool to listen to the radio chat as well.
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Tue Aug 27, 2013 1:24 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

I'm really surprised that the plane stays steady as the retardant is dropped. I would have expected a sudden climb, or a pitch up as the cool retardant created a low pressure area under the tail surfaces. The camera shows no discernible change in attitude as the load is released though. Amazing!
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Tue Aug 27, 2013 4:39 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

Very cool! Having watched it countless times from the ground, that was cool to see it from the air. They need to get a Master Warning Cancel button in that thing and shut that gal up though!
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Tue Aug 27, 2013 5:59 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

One of our own is on that thing hardcore right now. .Splashpilot. Hopefully when he lands( that will be most likely when it snows ) he will post some of the pictures he has grabbed . Said it's like pissing in the wind all day .Pretty sure he's driving the S-2 . . Got a call from a friend at pine mtn lake who said fire came 1/4 mile from their place . Thought they were done till the tankers came over the hill and laid it on thick . This fire is a monster
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Tue Aug 27, 2013 11:50 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

Emory Bored wrote:It's a monster.



Yes it is.

Last Thursday we drove over the Sierras on the Tioga Rd (Hwy 120) from Mono Lake heading to San Fran to watch some of the Louis Vuitton Cup races in SF Bay. Here's what that puppy looked like from the flats above Yosemite Valley:

Image

Image

Image

Scary enough from the ground. We were able to drop down into Yosemite Valley and exit the park on Hwy 140. 15,000+ guys fighting that behemoth. Hope they all stay safe and don't get caught out like those poor guys in Arizona.

YB
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Wed Aug 28, 2013 5:23 am

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

Hey Yellowbelly: What did you think of the Louis Vuitton Cup race? I was there last week and saw 2 " races" but they were more like parades. The technology of those flying boats is amazing, but the Kiwi ship was so much faster and better sailed than the Italian craft there wasn't much evidence of a race. I hope the America's Cup itself has some closer action next month! It is odd to have the tragedy of the rim fire and the excitement of a big yacht race taking place in such close proximity. Did you see the visiting yachts at the marina adjacent to the America's Cup Park? One of those sailboats is almost 300' long! That is a big toy!
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Wed Aug 28, 2013 5:47 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

I was hiking in Yosemite last week. It really grew fast.
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Fri Aug 30, 2013 12:33 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

Found this, not sure if its been posted.

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Fri Aug 30, 2013 8:21 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

xcalibursword wrote:Found this, not sure if its been posted.



That's impressive. Mother nature can be a real bitch. The amount of fuel there seems endless. I am amazed that man can even put a dent in a fire like that. I mean, what can we really do, but let it burn? Its really up to the old bitch herself when the fire gets put out. Loss of life is horrible, and property loss sucks, but fuel loading is real, and burning is part of the cycle. I am not really in touch with what happens out in the west but for those who live there, are they doing prescribed burns like they should be?
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Fri Aug 30, 2013 10:21 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

Flyhound wrote:I'm really surprised that the plane stays steady as the retardant is dropped. I would have expected a sudden climb, or a pitch up as the cool retardant created a low pressure area under the tail surfaces. The camera shows no discernible change in attitude as the load is released though. Amazing!

I wouldn't be too impressed. In all reality pilots are not the sharpest knifes in the drawer, Yes painfully true!!! in fact some would say were all a lil crazy. Immediate compensation and adjustment for loss of load and minor CG changes are all in a days work for reasonably trained fire suppression pilots. Routine... That's just the way they roll!!
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Fri Aug 30, 2013 10:22 pm

Re: Yosemite Rim Fire

exodus wrote:
Flyhound wrote:I'm really surprised that the plane stays steady as the retardant is dropped. I would have expected a sudden climb, or a pitch up as the cool retardant created a low pressure area under the tail surfaces. The camera shows no discernible change in attitude as the load is released though. Amazing!

I wouldn't be too impressed. In all reality pilots are not the sharpest knifes in the drawer, Yes painfully true!!! in fact some would say were all a lil crazy. Immediate compensation and adjustment for loss of load and minor CG changes are all in a days work for reasonably trained fire suppression pilots. Just routine... That's just the way they roll!!
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