RAMONA, Calif. — CalFire will soon add two powerful new aircraft to its Ramona Air Attack Base, significantly boosting the agency’s firefighting capabilities in San Diego County.
The new fleet additions include a C-130 air tanker capable of carrying over 4,000 gallons of fire retardant and an S-70 helicopter that can transport 1,000 gallons of water. The C-130 will more than triple the capacity of the base’s current air tankers, which hold about 1,200 gallons each.
“Basically, I see it as a one-two punch,” said Oscar Sotelo from Cal Fire. “We get a vegetation fire in San Diego County, we just increase the aircraft in the area that can go out and help put out these fires.”…