Aerial Firefighting

Potentially heavy winter rains may be the hot topic these days, but the Los Angeles County Fire Department doesn’t want Southern Californians to forget about those months sandwiched between the seasons of summer and El Nino--the wildfire season.

El Nino may not live up to expectations, but this year’s fire season--which started about four months early in April--has already caused problems. A few brush fires have already burned hillsides in Santa Clarita, and Ventura and Orange counties.

“This time of year is actually the worst. Humidity is down, temperatures are up and the wind’s blowing. It’s the recipe for major wildfires,” said Henry Rodriguez, a County Fire Department inspector. Fire Capt. Steve Valenzuela said: “We are in a critical stage in the fire season with live-fuel moisture. Right now, live-fuel moisture for all types in L.A. County is lower than it’s been on average in 16 years.”

Battling wild land blazes from the air as well as the ground has become standard practice in the Southland’s hilly terrain. The fixed-wing Super Scooper, on lease the last few seasons from the Canadian government, and the Erickson Air-Crane Helitanker, leased for a second season, are both on call and have been put to use in the past few months. Both are based at Van Nuys Airport:

Super Scooper

* Lease: $1.7 million for two Super Scoopers from Sept. 15 to Dec. 14.

* Flight crew: Two Canadian pilots.

* Water storage: Two tanks hold 1,620 gallons.

* Foam storage: Two tanks hold 159 gallons.

* Water retrieval: Can scoop from ocean as well as 22 bodies of water in the county. Body of water must be at least 4,000 feet long, 300 feet wide and 6 feet deep. It takes 10 seconds to fill tanks.

* Water drop: Can drop from as low as 150 feet above fire. Pilot opens water-drop doors, releasing water onto fire. Foam concentrate is injected from its storage tank into water tank.

* Usage: In initial attack on all first-alarm brush fires.

Helitanker

* Lease: $9,150 per day during first two months of fire season; $8,350 per day after that as needed. Cost for two aircraft is being shared by county and federal government. Lease is from Aug. 25 to Oct. 25, and after that as needed until Dec. 14.

* Flight crew: Two--pilot and co-pilot.

* Water storage: 2,000 gallons.

* Foam storage: Tank holds 77 gallons.

* Water retrieval: Uses giant “snorkel” straw to suck up water from a minimum 18-inch deep water source in 45 seconds.

* Water drop: A Global Positioning System feeds air-speed information to a microprocessor controlling tank doors. Tank doors automatically adjust water flow to one of eight coverage levels delivering between 1 and 8 gallons per 100 square feet, depending on the fire’s intensity.

* Usage: On second-alarm fires, or as requested.

Sources: Los Angeles County Fires Department; Canadair; Erickson Air-Crane Co.

Researched by JULIE SHEER / Los Angeles Times