Cockpit video shows California Air National Guard battling Hughes Fire
As of Thursday morning local time, the Hughes Fire haD burned more than 10,000 acres.
National Guard drop fire retardant on California Hughes Fire
Footage shot from the cockpit of a firefighting aircraft shows a U.S. Air National Guard pilot dropping fire retardant over the Hughes Fire in Southern California on Wednesday.
Footage shot from the cockpit of a firefighting aircraft shows a U.S. Air National Guard pilot dropping fire retardant over the Hughes Fire in Southern California on Wednesday.
The fire erupted Wednesday morning, exploding in size to 5,000 acres in less than three hours. As of Thursday morning, it had burned more than 10,000 acres.
To help with containment, the California Air National Guard flew an aircraft known as a C-130J Super Hercules carrying a Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) over the Hughes Fire in Castaic, California.
The C-130J is the main transport for air drops, and MAFFS are portable fire-retardant delivery systems used by the U.S. Forest Service, according to the California Air National Guard.
Outfitted with MAFFS, the C-130J was able to drop fire retardant, a pink substance, on the wildfire.
The California Air National Guard said the aircraft can drop up to 3,000 gallons of retardant in less than five seconds, capable of covering an area 100 feet wide and one-quarter of a mile long.
Eight C-130s equipped with MAAFS and assigned to aerial firefighting were launched to help CAL FIRE fight the wildfire outbreak in Southern California, the California Air National Guard said.