During the most fire-prone period of harvest, Western Australia’s grain crops are set to be safeguarded by an aerial firefighting fleet
A specialised aerial firefighting fleet has been activated early to protect Western Australia’s multibillion-dollar grain crops during the most prevalent fire period of harvest.
Crop fires usually start by lightning or machinery fault – including excessive heat – and as fire danger ratings begin to escalate, two aerial strike teams will be on standby to quickly respond.
The two strike teams will be strategically based in the main growing regions of Geraldton and Narrogin, with each team comprising two fixed wing waterbombers, an air attack supervision aircraft and a fuel truck.
Managed by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services, the aircraft can cruise at a speed of 280km/h, drop up to 3,150 litres of water, foam or retardant on a target, and require just minutes to refuel and reload.
“We know crops provide fuel for fire and in unfavourable conditions, lightning or a machinery spark can set off a crop fire,” agriculture and food minister Jackie Jarvis says,
“This initiative reduces response times and increases firefighting capability, helping to protect the lives and livelihoods of WA’s hard working farmers and their communities.”
Strike teams can be pre-deployed to other airbases in response to the latest intelligence reports.
Waterbombers will also move south as the harvest stretches into December, protecting busy farming communities near Esperance.
This is now the fourth year of the Grain Harvest Aerial Fleet program, which saw the strike teams complete 216 drops across 33 incidents during the 2023-24 harvest.
In this period, 680,400 litres were dropped on firegrounds from Geraldton to Esperance.