'Equivalent of Three Canadairs': French Military A400M to Join Wildfire Fight

France is preparing to deploy a military Airbus A400M transport aircraft to bolster its firefighting capabilities this summer, as the country grapples with an escalating wildfire season. The innovative measure aims to enhance aerial resources against the backdrop of intense heat and drought fueling numerous blazes.

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We are probably going to implement a new means of fighting forest fires this season, an innovative means: the use of the A400M aircraft that equips our armies.

Announced by the Director General of Civil Security, Julien Marion, the A400M will be equipped with a large-capacity water-dropping kit capable of carrying 20 tons of water. This capacity is equivalent to that of three Canadair water bombers, significantly increasing the volume of water that can be delivered to fire sites.

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a large-capacity water-dropping kit, 20 tons, which represents the equivalent of three Canadair.

The deployment is anticipated within the next 10 to 15 days, depending on immediate needs, and will complement the existing fleet of 12 Canadair aircraft. This initiative comes as France has already seen over 25,000 hectares consumed by fires since the beginning of the year, a figure nearly double that of the previous year. Major fires have recently occurred in the Pyrénées-Orientales, Drôme, and Indre regions.

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It's about double what was measured last year at the same date.