One of my best friend works in office that sell these planes and others. They get harsh snap to reality of "free" market and bribery in US. Seem that one excuse is that planes use to much water...to fight fire...insanity.
That it is.
"insanity"
Can you really expect sanity from the kind of person who would be in the Forest Service today?
And given the all-round superiority -- and availability -- of the Russian plane, bribery looks very plausible.