Free Republic

Nearly half of the federal government’s firefighting air tankers are siting idle at a California airport, grounded by the Obama administration in a contract dispute just weeks before wildfires swept through Texas killing a mother and her child, and destroying 100,000 acres. The massive blazes forced Texas Gov. and Republican presidential hopeful Rick Perry​ to abruptly call off a campaign appearance in South Carolina earlier this week to respond to the crisis, and may force him to cancel his first debate appearance Wednesday night. The U.S. Forest Service terminated the contract with Aero Union five weeks ago to operate...

Freeper Rotorcraft Pilots...Kaman has been working on an UAV version of the KMax and their is a fire / water delivery version of it. Can American ingenuity combine the 2 and get a few to Japan to help cool the Reactors ASAP?Do we as a Nation "Still Have it"?I look forard to your responses....

Montenegro’s Prime Minister Zhelko Sturanovic has thanked Russia for its help in extinguishing forest fires. He received the crew of the world’s biggest water plane IL-76, which is now returning to Moscow after the 10-day work in Montenegro. IL-76 can carry 42 tons of water, and it is thanks to the IL-76 water plane that the fire that approached Montenegro’s capital Podgorica and the Adriatic Sea resorts was put out. Earlier Russia’s planes and helicopters were used to put out forest fires in Bulgaria, Serbia, Macedonia, and Greece.

Russia is to send firefighting aircraft to help Greece combat forest fires raging amid record high temperatures. Five aircraft will be sent to Greece on Friday in response to an appeal by Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, Russia's Itar-Tass news agency said. Greek emergency crews are fighting fires in at least 15 parts of the country, officials said. There are also fires in Bulgaria, Italy and Macedonia. Hundreds of people have died in sweltering heat in South-East Europe. Cooler weather is expected to arrive over the weekend. 'Difficult situation' Prime Minister Karamanlis earlier telephoned Russian President Vladimir Putin asking for help...

MOSCOW. July 26 (Interfax) - Russia will airlift additional water bombers to Greece to battle fires in that country, President Vladimir Putin said, according to the Kremlin's press service. Greek Prime Minister Konstandinos Karamanlis asked Russia for additional assistance in fighting forest fires in telephone talks with Putin on Thursday, the press service said.

MOSCOW. July 24. (Interfax) - President Vladimir Putin has instructed Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu to organize assistance to Serbia to help it put out a number of forest fires. Serbian Prime Minister Vojslav Kostunica sent Putin a request for help. "The critical situation is causing enormous losses and threatens the lives and health of Serbian citizens," he said.

WASHINGTON - The Agriculture Department sent $1.1 billion in farm payments to more than 170,000 dead people over a seven-year period, congressional investigators say. The findings by the Government Accountability Office were released Monday as the House prepared to debate and pass farm legislation this week that would govern subsidies and the department's programs for the next five years. GAO auditors reviewed payments from 1999 through 2005 in the report, which was requested by Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley, senior Republican on the Senate Finance Committee. "It's unconscionable that the Department of Agriculture would think that a dead person was actively...

Forest fires on the Stara Mt. in southern Serbia have been localized and nearly put out. Blaze in Kuršumlija is under control. Police Rescue Unit Chief Predrag Marić told B92 that fires at Bela and Timočko Hill sites on the Stara Mt. were successfully contained after four days. He added that none of the neighboring countries were able to assist since they encountered the same problems. “We have established contact with colleagues from Greece and Bulgaria, but they are also engaged in battling blazes across their territories. Interior Minister Dragan Jočić asked Russia s Minister for Emergency Situations Sergei Shoigu...

Jul 22 2007 9:47AM MOSCOW. July 22 (Interfax) - A Russian Ilyushin Il-76 TD water- bomber, urgently dispatched to Bulgaria's Staraya Zagora, began a fire- fighting mission at 8 a.m. on Sunday, Emergency Situations Ministry spokesman Viktor Beltsov told Interfax. "At the request of the Bulgarian government, the ministry has sent an Il-76 water bomber capable of carrying 42 tonnes of water to Bulgaria," Beltsov said. Forest fires raging near Staraya Zagora are threatening to spread to populated areas, he said. The ministry will dispatch helicopter water bombers to Greece on July 24 and 25 to battle forest fires outside...

Just two years ago, the Hayman Fire roared through the Rockies, blackening 138,000 acres and destroying more than 130 homes. It cost roughly $240 million to fight. Did that fire have to grow to that size? Did that many homes have to burn? 7NEWS Investigator Tony Kovaleski has exposed a troubling trail of conflict and red tape inside the U.S. Forest Service. Earlier this month, after years of problems, the Forest Service grounded its fleet of air tankers. 7NEWS asks: has the government wasted taxpayer money on outdated, dangerous and underperforming aircraft while ignoring bigger, faster and newer technology? Twenty-three...