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Boise, Idaho, January 10, 2025 – The Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service has activated eight Department of Defense C-130 aircraft equipped with MAFFS to assist with battling wildfires in Southern California. Two aircraft from the California Air National Guard’s 146th Airlift Wing, are operating out of Channel Islands Air National Guard Station in support of fire suppression efforts. Six additional aircraft will be arriving over the next 24 hours: Two each, from the Air Force Reserve Command’s 302nd Airlift Wing, Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado, the Nevada Air National Guard’s 152nd Airlift Wing and the Wyoming Air National Guard’s 153rd Airlift Wing.
The eight aircraft are joining the Forest Service and other municipal, county, state and federal agencies fighting wildfires in the Greater Los Angeles Area. The aircraft will be working out of Channel Islands Air National Guard Station in Port Hueneme, Calif.
Having military C-130s that can be quickly converted into airtankers provides a critical “surge” capability that can be used to bolster wildfire suppression efforts when commercial airtankers are fully committed or not readily available. The C-130 aircraft are equipped with the U.S. Forest Service’s MAFFS, which can drop up to 3,000 gallons of fire retardant in less than 10 seconds across a quarter-mile line. The system slides into the back of the military aircraft, and retardant is released through a nozzle on the rear left side. The activation for Southern California comprises all eight C-130 aircraft that are part of the program.
On January 8, the National Wildland Fire Preparedness Level was elevated to 2 (out of 5), reflecting increased wildland fire activity across Southern California due to a sustained offshore wind event and very dry conditions. An additional, moderate offshore wind event is expected in the region early next week.
“We’re grateful to our military partners for answering the call to assist with such devastating wildfires,” said David Haston, Chair of the National Multi-Agency Coordination Group (NMAC). “These aircraft will provide important capacity to aerial firefighting efforts on the fires in and around Los Angeles.”
The NMAC is composed of wildland fire representatives from each wildland fire agency based at the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise, Idaho.
NIFC is the nation's support center for wildland firefighting. Nine different agencies and organizations are part of NIFC including, the Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, National Weather Service, U.S. Fire Administration, and the National Association of State Foresters.
For more information on Modular Airborne Firefighting Systems, visit: https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/fire/planes/maffs.
For background photos and videos of the MAFFS program, visit: www.dvidshub.net/feature/MAFFSAEG.
