France carried out its first nighttime aerial firefighting drops overnight on 17-18 August using an Australian CH-47D Chinook based at Mont-de-Marsan in southwest France. The heavy-lift helicopter, operated by Coulson Aviation for the New South Wales Rural Fire Service, carries an internal tank of about 11,300 litres of water or retardant and has been deployed to support night operations during the summer fire season.
The Chinook arrived in France in early August and is scheduled to remain through the end of September. It first flew operational sorties over the Luglon fire in the Landes on 14 August, when French officials were already describing the performance as strong enough to put the aircraft back into service the same afternoon.
A Bell 412 support helicopter is working alongside the Chinook on the mission. It carries about 1,800 litres and uses a multispectral camera to identify and mark targets for night drops. Nighttime waterbombing remains new to France operationally, and the current deployment has provided the first practical capability of its kind in the country.