Originally Posted by
Peter Fanelli
Google Avianca flight 52.
AFAIK, that one resulted in the mayday fuel terminology, along with the syllabus I was part of in the 1990s that made it clear that as PIC you are to use the words mayday mayday mayday in an emergency situation. It is then incumbent on ATC to get me on the ground with minimum track miles, minimum distractions, and moving everybody else out of the way. I don't think it is (or should be) ATCs job to determine how long they can keep me in the air...
The actual amount of fuel is irrelevant for the firefighting response. My aircraft type determines the level of crash response required at the airport, and that category is determined based on many other factors, not just fuel capacity. See
https://skybrary.aero/articles/rescu...hting-services