- Reaction score
- 24,709
- Points
- 1,010
2026 Wildfire Season
- Thread starter daftandbarmy
- Start date
- Reaction score
- 5,701
- Points
- 1,160
- Reaction score
- 990
- Points
- 910
Note that BC has the following Type 1 firefighters imported:Defense miniser says CAF is ready if asked for support, im surprised the province hasn't asked for federal assistance yet
Military ready to assist B.C. with wildfire relief efforts, Ottawa says
B.C. Interior blaze has displaced more than 20,000 people, growing dramatically over the weekendwww.theglobeandmail.com
300 - Mexico
100 - Costa Rica
185 - Alberta
80? - Quebec
Under BCWS policy Type 1 firefighters are needed to establish the initial wildfire perimeter control included danger tree work. Follow up crews - Type 2 Contract and Type 3 contract are limited on what parts of a fire they can operate on.
CAF members are normally considered Type 3 crews due to the lack of training they receive. So less call for the CAF when the international resources - who haven't always been available in recent years - can fill the gap.
There is also a significant Australian, New Zealand and for the first time Mexico overhead staff assisting internationally. Australia and New Zealand also have 250? staff split between crews and overhead in the US.
CIFFC gives a sense of who is where. Alberta, Nova Scotia, Manitoba, some Quebec and Yukon resources are still in Ontario plus 100 Mexican fire fighters.
- Reaction score
- 3,126
- Points
- 1,140
Doug Ford calls for purchase of 60 water bombers as part of national wildfire strategy
Some provinces are already buying additional aircraft from Calgary-based De Havilland, which manufactures the Canadair 515
www.theglobeandmail.com
Seems like Doug Ford read the email I sent him.
- Reaction score
- 7,245
- Points
- 1,160
Sure, that's water bombers Ontario doesn't have to buy. Provinces may have placed orders but the article makes it sound like their agents are in Calgary kicking tires on the DHC lot and looking at paint options.Doug Ford calls for purchase of 60 water bombers as part of national wildfire strategy
Some provinces are already buying additional aircraft from Calgary-based De Havilland, which manufactures the Canadair 515
Seems like Doug Ford read the email I sent him.
- Reaction score
- 990
- Points
- 910
60 water bombers...lets assume they're all CL-515's and that is the best airframe.Doug Ford calls for purchase of 60 water bombers as part of national wildfire strategy
Some provinces are already buying additional aircraft from Calgary-based De Havilland, which manufactures the Canadair 515
Seems like Doug Ford read the email I sent him.
That's something like 20-30 bomber "groups" in operation. Alberta alone operates 10 groups ranging from single plane configurations like the L-188 Electra or Dash 8-Q400 to 5/6 plane groups of Air Tractors.
Saskatchewan has 10 tankers - 6 CL-215's + 4 Dash8 Q400's. Call it 7 groups worth
Yukon has 5 - 1 Electra and 4 Air tractor 802's. 2 groups worth.
Manitoba has 7 tankers - CL-215 and CL-415's. another 2-3 groups worth.
I couldn't quickly find numbers for BC. But I'm already at 21 groups worth of tankers in just AB, SK, MB, and the YK.
This is unfortunately a lot like the CAF discussion on the next RCAF airframe - how many F-35's vs. Grippens does a person need and for what services. 60 will not be enough to cover Canadian demand.
There is already a small national fleet - for the first time ever - under CIFFC. While it's only 4 tankers (single groups) it's a start. However I also question how much should be federal unless it serves more than just a single purpose especially if it's going to be operated by the CAF. Buy airframes and putting out contracts to service and operate the planes - which is what some provinces do currently - makes more sense but then where do you place them?
Parks Canada is another option to place a national fleet under their control as it would keep the org structure somewhat clean. They currently do not have tankers that I am aware of but airstrips and tanker bases are also not set up in the parks. So another major infrastructure need to align with basing aircraft plus you need to geographically spread them out so it's not a base being set up but a system which is not cheap.
But at the end of the day...it doesn't matter how many tankers you have. Or how much heavy equipment. Or how many helicopters....you still need boots on the group. And if you don't have crews to back up suppression work then you're in trouble.
daftandbarmy
Army.ca Fossil
- Reaction score
- 47,796
- Points
- 1,160
- Reaction score
- 990
- Points
- 910
Was told they were having hiring issues in Ontario for pilots as well. For comparision for those who fly...here's the recruitment ad for an Ontario CL-415 pilot.It matters to Rob Ford because ...
Ontario Public Service Careers - Job Preview
Was not able to find a 2026 article but here's a 2025 article talking about some of the challanges. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/water-bomber-pilot-shortage-ontario-1.7566039
- Reaction score
- 42,449
- Points
- 1,210
Starting below $100k annualized.Was told they were having hiring issues in Ontario for pilots as well. For comparision for those who fly...here's the recruitment ad for an Ontario CL-415 pilot.
Ontario Public Service Careers - Job Preview
www.gojobs.gov.on.ca
Was not able to find a 2026 article but here's a 2025 article talking about some of the challanges. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/water-bomber-pilot-shortage-ontario-1.7566039
This thread just Venn Diagrammed bizarrely with the Iran thread.
John Gradek was kind in his assessment of Ford’s 60 aircraft, “Ford’s water bomber number appears to be pulled from thin air.”. Ford begrudgingly realizes forest fires cost the province a ton of money. Money we don’t have since he’s blowing a wad on the bottomless pit of nuclear power to feed the AI bottomless pit.
- Reaction score
- 5,701
- Points
- 1,160
- Reaction score
- 7,245
- Points
- 1,160
Or to build/move the Science Centre that only needed a refit. Or build Hwy 413. Of give away vehicle permits for free (an annual revenue stream of about $1Bn). The list is long and inglorious.
daftandbarmy
Army.ca Fossil
- Reaction score
- 47,796
- Points
- 1,160
We're mismanaging the forest cover to pander to the enviro lobbies. You can have a hundred squadrons of water bombers and it won't help.
More active forest management, not increasing the volume of 'protected' forest or buying more planes, can proactively prevent fires while reducing carbon emissions.
Natural Resources Canada’s own reporting confirms that changes in climate are increasing fire activity and “risking the carbon uptake potential of Canadian forests.” The implication is clear: if forests are not actively managed to reduce fire risk, their carbon storage function is threatened by the very fires that unmanaged conditions invite.
resourceworks.com
More active forest management, not increasing the volume of 'protected' forest or buying more planes, can proactively prevent fires while reducing carbon emissions.
Burning the evidence: How B.C.’s forest policy is making Canada’s climate problem worse
Why shifting from forest exclusion to active, science-based management is essential for climate stability and economic resilience.Natural Resources Canada’s own reporting confirms that changes in climate are increasing fire activity and “risking the carbon uptake potential of Canadian forests.” The implication is clear: if forests are not actively managed to reduce fire risk, their carbon storage function is threatened by the very fires that unmanaged conditions invite.
Burning the evidence: How B.C.’s forest policy is making Canada’s climate problem worse
British Columbia’s wildfire emissions in 2023 exceeded those of seven of the world’s ten largest national emitters. The policy of locking forests away from active management—while presented as environmental protection—is contributing to the very climate outcome it claims to prevent.
resourceworks.com
- Reaction score
- 5,701
- Points
- 1,160
As it happens I’ve been on a webinar today concerning large woodlot management on ALR land.We're mismanaging the forest cover to pander to the enviro lobbies. You can have a hundred squadrons of water bombers and it won't help.
More active forest management, not increasing the volume of 'protected' forest or buying more planes, can proactively prevent fires while reducing carbon emissions.
Burning the evidence: How B.C.’s forest policy is making Canada’s climate problem worse
Why shifting from forest exclusion to active, science-based management is essential for climate stability and economic resilience.
Natural Resources Canada’s own reporting confirms that changes in climate are increasing fire activity and “risking the carbon uptake potential of Canadian forests.” The implication is clear: if forests are not actively managed to reduce fire risk, their carbon storage function is threatened by the very fires that unmanaged conditions invite.
Burning the evidence: How B.C.’s forest policy is making Canada’s climate problem worse
British Columbia’s wildfire emissions in 2023 exceeded those of seven of the world’s ten largest national emitters. The policy of locking forests away from active management—while presented as environmental protection—is contributing to the very climate outcome it claims to prevent.
Key take always that is not communicated well by government, forestry or media:
The value of thinning.
- Wildfires likely will not not crown if thinned correctly. Fuel (tree) species such as deciduous trees is another deterrent.
- Crown fires create their own winds which drive wildfire at substantial velocity over surface wind speed.
- putting a wildfire in a position where it struggles to create super heated wind is a tactical advantage that will slow spread.
- Crown fires sends sparks many kilometers ahead of the wind it is creating, surface ground wildfires fires generally won't spread sparks more than a 100 meters.
Forestry Management
Forestry management doesn't need to aim to have fire proof forests, just fire resilient forests that slow the spread of the fire.
A slowly spreading fire gives options to evacuate, suppress, or simply choose to let the fire burn for its potential natural goodness.
- Reaction score
- 990
- Points
- 910
I saw this work last year....live. A full crown fire to hitting a FireSmart stand and dropping to a surface fire. Somehow nothing was lost.
The problem currently is what do you do with all the wood you need to thin out? Dead/small diameter etc. which has limited uses in the forest industry....pulp mill traditionally would use it but they're closing....and it's expensive to remove on a m3 basis compared to full tree clear cutting.
Ponder this alot as modifying the forest condition to less fire risk doesn't align well with economically viable activities (break even costs) and then what can you afford to spend - and where - when such large areas need to be treated. Biomass industries might make some sense but not against the cheap hydro in parts of the country or even natural gas prices currently. You need a European valuation on natural gas to make it make more sense...
A classic Canadian problem...too many resources, with too few consumers, in too many remote areas.
OldSolduer
Army.ca Relic
- Reaction score
- 22,860
- Points
- 1,260
- Reaction score
- 5,701
- Points
- 1,160
Grind, shred, chop and mulch on a massive industrial scale. Deliver to ag plots and sections in clay. I’ll place an order right now for 3 million tons.
daftandbarmy
Army.ca Fossil
- Reaction score
- 47,796
- Points
- 1,160
Cut stumpage to $0.25 m3, like they did for the beetle kill wood, and get out of the way... with some guard rails of course.
The forest industry is dying in BC due to onerous government policies pandering to ill informed, green washed urban BC voters who regularly return the NDP to power, and who suffer no ill effects from burning interior villages apart from some smoke in their lattes.
Meanwhile across the border (in Alberta) they have almost half the costs as I understand it, so that's where companies like Canfor are going. There, and the SE states. But you'd know more about that than me,
Similar threads
