Super scooper pilot shares inside look at aerial firefighting efforts in Oklahoma

Fighting wildfires takes a lot of manpower and a lot of firefighting equipment. The state brought in two super scooper planes to assist with the response. The firefighting planes are among only 15 in the country and being held inside a hangar in Burns Flat.

“So, these are the CL-215T’s,” said pilot Elic Kirby, pointing to the two planes in the hangar.

The aircraft is only designed to fight fires. And Kirby has been flying these planes for the past five years.

“If you don't love it, you don't do this kind of work,” Kirby said.

Kirby loves it.

“I’m the first officer on 283,” he said.

283 is one of two super scooper planes sent to Oklahoma to battle wildfires from the air.

“We're dropping only water, so we do direct attack wherever the flames are,” Kirby said.

Pilots maneuver the planes to scoop up water from nearby lakes and reservoirs, using a small scoop positioned on the belly of the plane.

“They’re not very big, but you’re going darn near 90 miles per hour, so it doesn’t take much,” he said.

Only seconds, in fact, to fill up the tanks with 1,400 gallons of water.

“We can make really tight turns, we've worked some where it was a minute and a half from scoop to drop. Can you imagine doing that for four hours, about a hundred drops?” Kirby said. “It's a busy day.”

Kirby says the wind can make it more challenging.

“It makes targeting harder,” Kirby said. “It changes because the fire is creating its own wind, the wind you see in one part won't be the same in another part of the fire, so we just adjust and make it happen.”

Andy James, the Fire Management Chief for The Oklahoma Forestry Services, monitors the fires moving across the state.

“I look for fuels first and foremost, and then second what's out in advance, what are those values at risk we're talking homes, communities,” James said.

So, he can strategically deploy crews on the ground and planes overhead, knowing the water drop will help them get a better handle on the flames.

“We use that to cool down that flaming front where we can get our resources in close to the fire to establish a controlled line,” James said. “We do that with specialized firefighting bulldozers.”

That’s why for pilots like Kirby, hitting that mark makes all the difference.

“It's tough to watch houses and properties get eaten all day,” Kirby said. “But just being there working with those ground guys that's our primary mission, to support them.”

The planes were grounded on Tuesday due to the high wind, but the aircrews will remain in Oklahoma during the fire danger.