Mutual aid support requested

  • Published
  • By Stefan Bocchino
  • 377th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
Kirtland Air Force Base --  The incident commander at the Miller wildland fire near Silver City, NM, requested mutual aid support from Kirtland Air Force Base May 15 to help fight a wildfire.
The request was for aircraft rescue firefighting support to provide coverage for the helicopter base. The support request was approved by the 377th Air Base Wing commander. On May 16, the base sent Crash Rescue Unit 14 and a P-19 vehicle loaded on a lowboy trailer. A rescue vehicle was also dispatched and included a fire officer and three firefighters.
"Everything has been just great," said Kirtland AFB Assistant Fire Chief Kristopher Gitter, unit supervisor. "The people here are not used to having this type of resource. When we arrived, it instilled a tremendous sense of comfort for the pilots and ground crews. We are setting a tremendous impression and image of the Air Force, Kirtland Air Force Base and the fire department."
The firefighters have supported more than 20 hot refuels and nearly 150 missions encompassing six aircraft.
These aircraft have transported more than 400 personnel, more than 100,000 pounds of cargo and 32,000 pounds of water dropped on the fire.
The P-19 holds 1,000 gallons of water and 130 gallons of class B foam concentrate. The foam is specifically designed to extinguish fire with flammable liquids. It is also equipped with a 500 pound dry chemical unit used to extinguish electrical fires and chemicals that are present in aircraft accidents.
The P-19 has two exterior nozzles that can shoot water or foam up to 175 feet in order to extinguish a fire.
"In response to a U.S. Forest Service request, Kirtland AFB fire department professionals deployed to this fire fight outfitted with a combination of wildland fire training and crash rescue equipment expertise," said Col. Donald Conley, Mission Support Group commander. "Knowing that their presence reassures the helicopter pilots fighting this fire under very hazardous conditions gives us a great sense of accomplishment; we are very proud of these firefighters' contribution."