Thanks for comments so far. I was only using the Super Puma as an example...I am sure there are suitable helicopters nearer...e.g. The Met Police EC145s and having some strategically placed Bambi buckets would surely be more cost effective than the huge cost of trying to fight major blazes with multiple crews and fire appliances,,sometimes over a period of days. As to money,our local fire brigade troll around in a hovercraft to rescue holiday makers "stuck"in the mud at low tide so equipment purchases are not necessarily the issue,although I concede running and maintenance costs can be. I imagine too you would need to have crews trained for the task too.