How to Fight Wildfires from the Air

Wildfire season has already begun in Canada, and all signs suggest this year could be worse than the record-breaking season of 2023. Aerial firefighting teams are a key weapon in fighting blazes at this scale.

Alberta averages about 143 air tanker missions a year, but in 2023, the province flew a whopping 502. In a normal season, the British Columbia Wildfire Service runs an average of 560 tanker missions; last year, it flew 816.

With more than 90 pilots and 70 aircraft, B.C.-based Conair says it operates the largest privately owned, fixed-wing aerial firefighting fleet in the world. It contracts out amphibious and land-based tankers, along with pilots, to both Western provinces, as well as to Yukon and Alaska.

Every spring, pilots complete ground, on-wing and aerial simulation training sessions at Conair before they’re deployed. This year, CBC News accompanied pilots as they began their training sessions at Conair’s headquarters in Abbotsford, B.C.