OUR GROWING FLEET
CHINOOK CH-47 HELITANKERS
The CH-47 and UH-60 helitankers arrived in the summer of 2019 and now operate in both aerial firefighting and heavy-lift operations.
BLACKHAWK UH-60 HELITANKERS
The UH-60 and CH-47 helitankers arrived in the summer of 2019 and now operate in both aerial firefighting and heavy-lift operations.
737 FIRELINER
The newest addition to our fleet are the 737 FireLiner™ aircraft. Coulson Aviation is the first company in the world to convert Boeing’s 737 commercial airliners into FireLiner™ tankers. We have six 737 FireLiner™ tankers, each receiving 43,000+ technician hours to become fully compliant and operational.
C-130 HERCULES
The C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Martin. It has been our leading attacker in aerial firefighting missions across the globe. It’s highly effective in aerial firefighting due to its ability to employ makeshift runways for takeoffs and landings.
The C-130 Hercules, equipped with a Coulson RADS-XXL 4,000 US Gallon roll-on roll-off tanking system, is one of the world’s most powerful aerial firefighting aircraft due to its range, versatility, and suppression ability per drop.
SIKORSKY S-61 HELICOPTERS
Coulson Aviation’s fleet of Sikorsky S-61s are the rotary wing workhorses of our fleet, transporting our firefighters, and delivering retardant drops to fire zones. S-61s have been moving Rap Attack Crews since we started our program with the United States Forest Service (USFS) in 2001.
1) Coulson is the only Type 1 helicopter operator in the world with the approval to transport crews (up to 18 Firefighters at once) in the United States, Canada, and Australia.
2) Our Sikorski S-61s are certified with a 1,057-gallon belly tank equipped with a foam and/or gel injection system. This reduces firefighting configuration installation & removal times to under 30 minutes.
3) Coulson S-61 helicopters can employ real-time accountability and measurement system technology. This breakthrough technology transmits data via the Iridium Network, that can track exact locations and precise quantities for every load delivered, allowing crews to monitor aircraft progress and cost-per-gallon reports.
4) Coulson Aviation is the first company in the world to incorporate NVG (Night Vision Goggles) technology within a Sikorksy S-61 aircrew configuration and develop highly detailed operational practices required to safely conduct aerial firefighting. This type of firefighting has the potential to be 10 times more efficient than daytime operations. Learn more about our innovations in night aerial firefighting here.
SIKORSKY S-76 HELICOPTERS
Coulson’s Sikorsky S-76, a command-and-control aircraft, is equipped with a thermal imaging camera that relays video to a flat screen in the back of the helicopter. FireWatch™ 76 is used for the NVG program, allowing aerial firefighting response(s) to wildfires 24/7, with its night operation capability for hotspot detection, fire behavior analysis, fire perimeter maps, plus mobile and/or static command-and-control center operations.
BELL 412 HELICOPTERS
The Bell 412 is a utility helicopter of the Huey family manufactured by Bell Helicopter. It is a development of the Bell 212, with the major difference being the composite four-blade main rotor.
Development began in the late 1970s with two Bell 212s being converted into 412 prototypes. An advanced four-blade main rotor, with a smaller diameter, replaced the 212's two-blade rotor. A Bell 412 prototype first flew in August 1979. The initial model was certified in January 1981 with deliveries commencing the same month.
The 412 model was followed by the 412SP (Special Performance) version, featuring larger fuel capacity, higher takeoff weight, and optional seating arrangements. In 1991, the 412HP (High Performance) variant, with improved transmission, replaced the SP version in production. The current production version, 412EP (Enhanced Performance), is equipped with a dual digital automatic flight control system.
MARTIN MARS
The Martin Mars is the largest operational flying boat in existence. In 2007 Coulson Aircrane Ltd. purchased the Hawaii Mars and Philippine Mars to expand its firefighting capabilities, establishing itself as the only operator at the time operating both fixed wing and rotary wing firefighting aircraft.
The next-generation Hawaii Mars has an EFIS glass cockpit with the ability to stream live data from other on-board indication equipment, including real time flight tracking, load measuring, aircraft performance, atmospheric conditions, drop reading(s), and drop location data.
CHALLENGER
Our Bombardier Challenger jets complete our full-service aerial fleet. These Challenger 600’s can transport our clients, medivac support, technical support, equipment, parts, and firefighting teams anywhere in the world.
CESSNA CITATION
The Cessna Citation family is Cessna's business jets line, forming the largest business jet fleet. The first Citation was put into service in 1972, with more than 35 million flight hours logged since. Fifty years after the first flight, more than 7,500 Citations have been delivered to customers around the world.
The stand-up Citation III/VI/VII was delivered from 1983 to 2000, its fuselage was reused in the Citation X/X+, delivered from 1996 to 2018, the Excel since 1998, and the Sovereign since 2004. The Mustang was a Very Light Jet delivered, from 2006 to 2017, while the flat floor fuselage Latitude has been delivered since 2015, and the larger Longitude from 2019.
