Inside the lines: Redmond Air Tanker Base

REDMOND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The Redmond Air Tanker Base has pumped more than 1 million gallons of retardant in the last two weeks, reaching its typical annual volume in just 14 days. Crews at the base are currently supporting firefighting efforts for the Akawa Butte Fire, the Rowe Creek Complex Fire and several other blazes across Central Oregon.

As one of five regional bases in Oregon, the facility serves as a primary hub for a fleet of air tankers. Large tankers operating out of the base carry between 3,000 and 4,000 gallons of retardant per drop to suppress wildfires throughout the region.

Eric Graff, the Redmond Air Base manager, said the facility typically pumps about 1 million gallons of retardant per year. “Our yearly average is about a million gallons per year and we've pumped over a million gallons just in the last ten days,” Graff said.

The base operates as a full-service facility where staff members mix retardant, fuel aircraft and manage crew logistics. Graff said the base handles orders for fires as dispatches arrive. “We send the we load the tankers up with retardant, send them out to fires, reload them, refuel them, take care of the air crews needs lunches, dinners, transportation,” Graff said. “We mix a lot of retardant every day.”

There are 45 air tanker bases across the United States that serve as hubs for a fleet of more than 30 large and very large air tankers. The aircraft are owned by private companies and contracted by the U.S. Forest Service. While some companies maintain their own hubs, such as Erickson in Madras, most tankers move throughout the country based on service requests.

Graff said the proximity of the base to active fires is a critical factor in the effectiveness of the response. “The rule of thumb is, wherever the fire's at, they go to the closest reload base to reload,” Graff said. “So it makes a difference on that fire. If they don't have to travel to far to reload that retardant and get back to the fire. So being in Central Oregon, we we're very busy right now especially.”

When a tanker returns to the facility, ground crews work to minimize the time it spends out of service. Graff said the turnaround time for aircraft in the loading area is rapid. “When it gets into the loading pit, we can load it and fuel it and normally have it out within 15 minutes or so,” Graff said.