The Brazilian Air Force (FAB) announced this Friday (28) its participation in fighting fires in the Pantanal region. The KC-390 Millennium aircraft, operated by the First Troop Transport Group (1st GTT) – Zeus Squadron, based at Anápolis Air Base (BAAN), is in Corumbá (MS) to perform the firefighting mission in flight in the burned.
The FAB multimission aircraft, developed by the Brazilian manufacturer EMBRAER, has the capacity to carry out a safe operation and is equipped with the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS), which provides the KC-390 Millennium with the functionality necessary to carry out firefighting action in flight.
Learn more about MAFFS
The MAFFS equipment has a tube that projects water through the left rear door of the plane, and can discharge up to 3.000 gallons – approximately 12.000 liters – of water in fire areas, with or without fire retardant, according to the standard coverage level criteria of the aircraft. soil and on different types of terrain. This system offers greater precision, significantly increasing the effectiveness of firefighting operations. All of this is carried out taking into the hardships of the operation, which requires flying at low altitude, low speed and high temperatures. This way, it is possible to keep the aircraft pressurized, that is, without compromising the performance of the KC-390.
The MAFFS can be quickly installed or removed from the aircraft cargo compartment from its own trailer. The system only requires electrical power from the aircraft to operate. This is a highly advantageous element in firefighting operations, as it has the capacity to carry a large volume of water and flame retardants, in addition to being able to be quickly installed on any compatible aircraft, due to its modularity feature.
Furthermore, the ground reservoir – the place used to refill water on the aircraft – has a capacity of 22 thousand liters of water.
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