Aircraft Important Part of Firefighting

(KLIX)- A key element fighting many of the fires in southern Idaho is aircraft. At the Twin Falls Airport and Bureau of Land Management air base crews work tirelessly to get firefighting planes in the air. Nearly every minute there is some type of aircraft landing or taking off from Joslin Field. They touch down briefly, refuel and reload with fire retardant and then take off to battle more fires. About 40 people make up a team of coordinators, ground crews and pilots. Interagency Aviation manager Greg Loper says the types of air craft are vast. Many planes and helicopters are distinctly marked with white and red or orange. Others like the C-130 Modular Airborne Firefighting Systems or MAFFS are standard military grey. They can carry up to 3,000 gallons of fire retardant. The MAFFS have come out of Boise while several planes have come up from Utah to help.