Two new aircraft introduced for aerial surveillance of fires in South-West

2/12/97

Aerial surveillance of forest fires in the South-West will be stepped up this summer with the introduction of two new spotter aircraft into the Department of Conservation and Land Management's air wing.

Environment Minister Cheryl Edwardes today unveiled the new planes, Champion Scouts, that are being phased in to replace CALM's aging Piper Cub fleet.

Mrs Edwardes said aircraft had been used in Western Australia's forest fire operations for almost 30 years.

"Since aerial surveillance was introduced in 1971, the spotter fleet has notched up more than 130,000 flying hours," she said.

"In that time the air wing has flown about two million kilometres, or the equivalent of 50 times around the Equator.

"It is a reflection of the durability of the Piper Cubs and the 100 pilots who have flown them at one time or another, that there has been only one serious accident which involved an injury to the pilot."

The spotter squadron had been a remarkable training ground for many of those pilots who had since gone on to much bigger things in their flying careers. Some of the pilots now were 747 flight captains.

Mrs Edwardes said the introduction of aerial surveillance, coupled with the extensive fire lookout tower network that had its origins back in the 1930s, had provided WA with a forest fire detection system that was unequalled in Australia and the envy of many countries overseas.

The new Champion Scouts were an ideal replacement for the aging Piper Cubs that no longer were in production.

The planes were 30 per cent faster and had twice the surveillance endurance of the Cubs and could maintain continual aerial reconnaissance for eight hours without refuelling.

The planes were the first two Scouts to be used by CALM and marked the beginning of a five-year program during which the Cubs would be gradually replaced.

Mrs Edwardes said the new planes had been named 'Numbat' and 'Chuditch', two of the endangered species of animals found in the forest that the aerial surveillance will help protect from the ravages of wildfires.

Media contacts: Ministerial Diana Russell Coote 9421 7777

CALM Rick Sneeuwjagt 9334 0375