Canada's Coulson Aviation has won a two-year government contract for Australia’s National Large Air Tanker (LAT) fire-fighting service.
A converted Boeing 737, Tanker 139 is the newest addition to Coulson’s FireLine fleet and will be based in Sydney, for deployment around the country "as needed".
“Coulson is proud to provide our state-of-the-art aircraft to the Federal Australian Government. This aircraft is an incredibly efficient bomber and the crews that operate each of our aircraft are second to none,” said Coulson Aviation Australia chief executive Britt Coulson.
The flying fire engine is equipped with Coulson Aviation’s Retardant Aerial Delivery System (RADS), the company's patented tanking and release system, giving it the capability of dropping up to 4,000 gallons of retardant or water at flow rates of up to 3,000 gallons per second.