California has completed the expansion of its aerial firefighting fleet with the addition of its final two Firehawk helicopters, bringing the total to 16. Cal Fire and Governor Gavin Newsom announced the milestone Thursday at McClellan Airport in Sacramento.
So far this year, nearly 5,000 wildfires have scorched a quarter-million acres and killed at least 31 people across California.
At a hangar at the airport, Cal Fire maintenance aviation officer Steven Torres walked around the newest addition to the fleet, highlighting what sets the Firehawks apart from the aging Vietnam-era Huey helicopters they’re replacing.
“There’s a lot more space in this helicopter to perform bigger rescues,” he said. “If they need to fly additional firemen or passengers, they have the capability to do so. This is a great aircraft and we’re proud to have (it) as part of our fleet.”
Firehawks are equipped with dual engines — a major upgrade over the single-engine Hueys.
“It makes it a little bit safer, especially in some of these bases in remote areas like Humboldt County and Lassen County,” said John Williamson, battalion chief for Cal Fire’s aviation operations.
Cal Fire began gradually integrating the helicopters into its fleet in 2018, boosting the agency’s ability to fly farther, faster, and carry nearly three times more water than the Hueys. One of their most significant advantages, officials say, is their ability to fly at night.
Cal Fire Director Joe Tyler said they’ve already played a major role in fire responses, including the Palisades Fire in Southern California earlier this year.
“A proud dad moment of mine was in the devastation of the Palisades Fire, in the middle of the night, to see eight of my helicopters over Mandeville Canyon trying to extinguish a spot fire,” Tyler said.
He said the new helicopters will be stationed across the state in several counties including Humboldt, Mendocino, Lake and Lassen counties.
“At the end of the day, these helicopters are here to serve and support the people of California, both our residents and our visitors,” he added. “It is to protect our resources.”
Newsom praised the expansion but warned that the state is doing it without strong federal support. He criticized the $450 million in wildfire prevention cuts included in the federal “Big Beautiful Bill” passed last month. It slashed funding for forest thinning, weather technology and vegetation management.
Newsom said the cuts will have a huge negative impact on California.
“Cutting the U.S. Forest Service, cutting critical offices, cutting prediction analysis and weather technology, cutting forest and vegetation management, all the while lecturing states like California to do more, and it’s exactly what we continue to do in the absence of federal leadership and responsibility,” he said. “We are stepping into that void. The largest aerial firefighting fleet in the world.”
While some of Cal Fire’s older Huey helicopters will remain in use, Newsom said others will be transferred to the U.S. Forest Service.
