Mike Benson

Michael Benson joined Conair after a 30-year career in wildfire, most recently leading the wildfire operations research program at FPInnovations, a not-for-profit research and development organization based in Canada. Prior to FPInnovations, Michael led the airtanker program for British Columbia Wildfire Service, responding to wildfires spread over nearly 1 million sq kilometers with both amphibious water bombers and retardant airtankers. Michael’s hands-on experience in aerial firefighting, combined with his research in methods to protect forests and communities from wildfires, offers global agencies a wealth of support as they address the complex challenge of responding to escalating wildfire behaviour in the face of climate change.