Water drops over remote parts of the Tahoe National Forest were on the April training plan for military C-130 crews preparing for wildfire duty. The practice joined pilots with civilian lead-aircraft crews, ground teams and the people who keep the temporary tanker systems working.
The April 20–24 recertification at McClellan Airtanker Base in Sacramento prepared crews to operate the Modular Airborne Firefighting Systems, or MAFFS. Nevada’s National Guard subsequently confirmed its 152nd Airlift Wing took part and that the training certified crews to use the equipment.
A MAFFS unit is a pressurized tank system that slides into the back of a C-130. It releases retardant through a nozzle on the aircraft’s rear left side. The National Interagency Fire Center says a fitted aircraft can dispense up to 3,000 gallons in less than ten seconds along a quarter-mile line.
The exercise used practice water drops; those capability figures are not a tally of retardant delivered to an active fire.
A surge force with a defined role
NIFC described eight C-130s in the national MAFFS program. They provide additional capacity when commercial airtankers in the national fleet are fully committed or unavailable.
That role requires military crews to fit into an existing firefighting operation. The April plan included classroom instruction, flying and ground work, with Redding Air Attack Base serving as another reload location.
Nevada also prepared reinforcements for a different job. About 40 Army National Guard soldiers completed annual training with the Nevada Division of Forestry and earned Type 2 wildland firefighter certification, the Guard reported April 30.
They practiced digging fire lines, deploying shelters and using hand and ignition tools. Instruction in weather, terrain, fuels and fire behavior supplied the context for those tasks.
An aircraft qualification and a ground-firefighter certification do not substitute for one another. April’s work prepared separate groups to join civilian crews where needed: one delivering material from the air, the other working with tools on the fire line.
Sources
- Aerial wildland fire training taking place next week in Northern California — National Interagency Fire Center · 2026-04-17.
- Nevada Guard Ready to Fight Wildfires From Air and Land — Nevada National Guard · 2026-04-30.