Smokey the Bear Says: Let the U.S. Air Force Bomb Forest Fires

[rangerrebew]

Smokey the Bear Says: Let the U.S. Air Force Bomb Forest Fires
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No, not with smart bombs or laser-guided missiles.
Michael Peck [2]

Attention, U.S. Air Force: Smokey the Bear needs air support.

2016 has been a bad year for the furry fire marshal. With many parts of the world suffering from record heat and drought (the thermometer hit 129 degrees Fahrenheit in northwest Kuwait in July), wildfires have been erupting around the globe. The Western United States, especially California, has been particularly hard hit, with 35 uncontained fires reported in August alone. By now, the scenes have become familiar: the burning trees, the residential homes just a firebreak away from destruction, the thin lines of overworked and exhausted firefighters.

But a California company has an idea for putting out wildfires: have the Air Force bomb them.

No, not with smart bombs or laser-guided missiles, silly. Remember what Smokey the Bear says: Please don't carpet bomb forests. In fact, what the Air Force would drop is nothing more than giant water balloons.

 
Source URL (retrieved on October 9, 2016): http://nationalinterest.org/blog/smokey-the-bear-says-let-the-us-air-force-bomb-forest-fires-17977

[SZonian]

I like the concept, the aircrews can use these for practicing real world military air drop runs, so the missions could be classified as "pilot proficiency". 

It'll take more than a miracle for something like this to get done.  You're talking about government bureaucracies here, they don't want to work together.

Let's not forget the private companies who make big $$ with their tankers and super scoopers.