Hey John.
Is that photo of the DC-10 fair dink?
Looks like the desert country around Mojave in California. I know they have a lot of surplus airliners there. I can just see some of the RFS air attack supervisors trying to fit THAT into the circuit.
Re: the discussion about light machines bucketting.
I fly a 1000 litre machine, but have a bit of time bucketting in the 206 as well.
What's the bigger waste of resources?
(a) A JetRanger trying to extinguish active metre high flames.
or
(b) A Huey dousing small but numerous smokers.
I firmly believe that a combination of bucket sizes working together provides the most efficient use of resources. It always seems to work best when a heavy, a medium and a light work the same fire and pick the targets that best suit their load. I think a policy which restricts light helicopters from bucketting would be a retrograde one