Nobody with the USFS would authorize us to help out during the Colorado fires, so out of frustration, we flew the mission anyway.
Like it or not, the USFS loved our ability to locate the fires with accuracy and we made a difference. The people on the ground absolutly loved our data.
Now get this! We provide the data and not the airplanes for other usage. Our aircraft fly at 10,000 feet above the fires and do not present a problem with other essential aircraft. But according to USFS regulation, our airplanes must comply to their regulations for carrying passengers.
Unfortunatly, the USFS has strict rules about aircraft that are used for fighting the fires and they used those rules to prevent us from help out.
Hopefully, by next year, we can finally be approved by their imspectors.
Oh well, homes will be lost and thousands of miles of our forests will be sacrificed this year.
We did everything in our power to help out this year, but it was nothing but a wasted effort.