[Paisano]

SUPERTANKER

Fonte: http://www.evergreenaviation.com/supertanker/index.html

Evergreen International Aviation is proud to announce the development of an advanced multi-mission aircraft, the Evergreen Supertanker.

This aircraft, a Boeing 747 with 24,000 gallons of tank space on board, will offer the most superior drop capabilities, safety standards and operational flexibility of any aircraft on the market.

The Problem:

For decades the United States government has relied on aviation resources, primarily in support of ground forces, to combat large fires. But as the severity of the fire seasons have increased, so have the problems associated with the aging aircraft fleet.

Historically, just how severe is the wildfire problem? Since 1990, according to the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), 60,594,824 acres have burned in the United States. This huge area is equal to the entire state of Oregon, the nation’s 10th largest state, being destroyed by fire.

These fires have cost an extraordinary amount of money to combat. According to NIFC, which has compiled firefighting costs since 1994, over $6.9 billion was spent to suppress these fires. But the true cost of wildfire is much higher. These costs do not factor in cumulative wildfire costs, which include timber, tourism and property losses. If you factor in these costs, in 2002 alone, a year in which over 88,000 fires burned nearly 7 million acres, cumulative wildfire costs amounted to nearly $10 billion.

The Solution:

Evergreen International Aviation realizes new aerial firefighting challenges call for a new and improved aircraft. In response to this urgent problem, Evergreen International Aviation has combined its years of aerial firefighting expertise with its experience as an owner/operator of Boeing 747 aircraft to develop the nation’s next generation firefighting and aerial application platform—the Evergreen Supertanker.

The Evergreen Supertanker’s drop capabilities, effectiveness, safety standards and operational flexibility are revolutionary. With guidance from appropriate agencies, Evergreen will assist state, federal and worldwide experts redefine how fires are fought and emergency management missions are performed.

This aircraft is being built using scientific data and study with an emphasis on safety and effectiveness. To date, over 50 degreed engineers/scientists have invested an estimated 20,000 hours on this project.

Evergreen is not just developing a new aircraft. Instead, we have designed and will deploy the first true turnkey emergency response program capable of supporting a vast range of urgent missions worldwide.

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[emarques]

Eu já tinha visto qualquer coisa sobre isto num programa de televisão. É uma capacidade de carga impressionante. 90.000 litros de água, isso dá para encher uns 15 Canadair. Claro que uma frota de 15 Canadair é capaz de dar uma capacidade de resposta bastante melhor, mas num território como os EUA um 747 a largar líquido é capaz de fazer todo o sentido.

Uma coisa que não sabia é que existem sistemas de combate a incêndios que se podem usar em aviões P-3. Mais ou menos a mesma capacidade do Beriev 200. Talvez reciclar um par de P-3P para combate a incêndios, quando chegarem os aviões holandeses, não fosse uma ideia muito descabelada? O serviço não deve exigir tanto dos aviões como a patrulha marítima.
http://www.aerounion.com/article.asp?ar ... av=asdmain

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