rizona often sounds the starting gun for western North America’s wildfi re season due to its climate (hot and dry) and widespread vegetation that dies or goes dormant (which, either way, dries out), starting in the spring. Those conditions and fuels then meet either lightning or, four times out of fi ve, human sources of ignition such as untended campfi res, tow chains


dragging and sparking on the road, fl icked cigarettes, fi reworks, or any number of easily preventable causes. Then it’s confl agration time. Once lit, Arizona’s varied terrain can accelerate a fire’s spread and hamper its


control. Rugged canyons spread fires both upslope, as you would expect, but winds can become twisted in those canyons, driving the fire also down or across to the opposing face. That terrain also hampers access by ground crews and air crews alike. Even relatively flat expanses of grasses pose challenges, as winds both drive the fire directly and carry embers far beyond the involved area, igniting noncontiguous lands. What’s needed are tools to quickly bring the fi ght to the fi res.


Opening spread: Flames sweep across the Mazatzal Mountains 40 miles northeast of Phoenix. This remnant of the Bush Fire, so named for its proximity to the nearby Bush Highway, ranks as the fifth- largest wildfire in Arizona’s history.


These pages: Columbia Helicopters had two Boeing CH-47D aircraft working on wildfires during the 2020 season in Arizona. This one was stationed at a small airfield called Grapevine, near the Bush Fire, whose smoke colored the setting sun.


50 ROTOR 2020 Q4


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