Aerial firefighting fleet prepared for high-risk summer

This season's fleet were unveiled at Avalon Airport on Thursday.

Aircraft play a key role in supporting our firefighting resources on the ground, including thousands of dedicated emergency services workers from FFMVic, Country Fire Authority, Fire Rescue Victoria, the Victoria State Emergency Service and other agencies.

This year’s fleet includes additional fixed wing aircraft with intelligence gathering capability, which will enable faster tactical decision making and ensure Victoria remains well prepared for the risk of fires.

Returning are two Large Air Tankers, which can operate from smaller regional airports , making them more agile to move around the state.

The fleet also includes a dedicated night firebombing helicopter, a Super Puma, with a capacity of 4,000 litres. The Super Puma is supported by an Air Attack Supervision aircraft which assists with fire detection and observation at night.

Two Aircranes are also en route to Victoria following their service period iin North America. The state will be supported by 3 additional aircraft until the Aircranes arrive.

Aircraft are positioned across the state according to risk and can be moved as the fire risk changes. Victoria also has access to a call-when-needed fleet of more than 100 aircraft and can request additional aircraft from the National Fleet.

The latest Australian Seasonal Bushfire Outlook for Summer indicates most of western and southwestern Victoria, northeastern Victoria and parts of greater Melbourne, Mornington Peninsula and southwest Gippsland are at an increased risk of fire activity. Fire risk potential for remaining parts of the state is forecast to be normal for summer – which means fires are still possible.

For more information on how you can prepare for fires and other emergencies, download the VicEmergency app or visit Vic Emergency.