The Georgia Forestry Commission is fighting fires in Georgia and surrounding states, and some of their firefighters make a difference from the air.
MACON, Ga. — Wildfires have been raging throughout California this week, damaging over 10,000 buildings, according to area authorities. In Central Georgia, crews are also trained to handle wildfires when they pop up.
That’s why the Georgia Forestry Commission has an aerial firefighting team. This teams fights wildfires in Georgia and bordering states.
Clay Chatham is a part of the Georgia Forestry Commission. He says he has been fighting wildfires for over twenty years.
Now he teaches new pilots how to fly in fires.
“Flying is the same as a pilot flying a fixed wing aircraft or a rotor wing aircraft. The skill set is basically the same,” he said. “The environments we fly in are different, the conditions are different – maybe the pressures are a little bit different.”
He says the environments they fly in can be dangerous, and they use some of the same firefighting aircrafts that California is using.
“They do have the suppression aircraft like we do. The helicopters and the tankers – they have a great fleet, a huge fleet, very well done,” he said. “It was a very good program out there.”
Luke Wise flies patrol planes at the commission.
He says he started at the Georgia Forestry Commission two and a half years ago, and he’s learned a lot so far.
“The biggest thing would be our lingo and learning to talk to each other and then learning to take on so many tasks at once,” Wise says.
Wise says there’s a greater pressure to stay alert while flying, because there are so many tasks at once, and pilots are constantly having to deal with new problems as they arise.
“Everything is increased because you’re closer to obstacles and then you’re closer to the ground. And on top of that, you’re trying to fly the airplane too, and keep the airplane in the air while keeping everybody safe and keeping everybody on the ground safe,” Wise says.
Chatham says they have not been asked to help with the wildfires in California.
He says they mostly fight fires in Georgia and nearby states.
The Georgia Forestry Commission says the state has more than 2,300 wildfires a year averaging about seven acres a piece.
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