PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo.—Seven Air Force reservists from Colorado are traveling to Thailand to help train the Thai Royal Air Force in airborne firefighting.
Members of the 302nd Airlift Wing at Peterson Air Force Base will train Thai aviators on using the C-130 cargo plane as an air tanker. They leave Jan. 17.
This will be the first time the Reserve has trained another nation’s air force in firefighting. The training will include classroom instruction and air drops using Thai C-130s.
The planes can be loaded with the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System, which can drop about 3,000 gallons of retardant onto a fire line in a matter of seconds.
The Peterson unit is one of three in the U.S. that are trained and equipped to use C-130s as firefighting tankers.
