During the fight with by fire u Deliblato Sands On Friday (August 7), the police helicopter unit had a 26-hour sortie, and 270 tons of water were dropped from the air.
As stated by the MUP, four helicopters of the Ministry of Internal Affairs were engaged - two H215 Super Pumas, Kamov Ka-32 and H145.
The capacity of buckets carried by helicopters is far less than the capacity of canards, as all aircraft capable of capturing water and extinguishing fires are commonly called.
The name has existed since the Canadian CL-215 aircraft was created in the mid-sixties, which, due to its amphibious configuration and ability to take water from the sea, lakes and rivers, became synonymous with the firefighting aircraft.
"Clean" water needed
"Serbia does not have canards and cannot have them," Petar Vojinović, editor of the aviation portal Tango Six, told Vreme. "The Canadar is a type of craft that must have a large surface area of uncontaminated water. Almost all countries that use it are littoral."
Airplanes need at least a kilometer of water deep and wide enough to capture.
However, as Vojinović explains, Serbian rivers and lakes are not suitable because any debris, wood or anything else in the water makes it impossible for the canard to work. It goes without saying that the surface of the water must not have bridges, docks, islands, ships...
"During various deliberations over the past thirty years, the conclusions have been reached that the water courses of Serbia - rivers, lakes - are not suitable for the way the canard takes water," says Vojinović.
He reminds that previously Russian planes from the center in Niš had to be refueled at the airport, which makes the plane pointless. Because the whole idea of the canard is to capture five to six tons of water in just ten seconds, so that it can have a large number of surges.
Photo: Wikimedia / Javiramos43Canadian in action
There is no magic solution out of thin air
That's how helicopters stay. "Helicopters are excellent for starting fires because they are more flexible and can be filled faster from pools, which can be mobile, or can be easily dipped into a river or lake. So, it can be filled anywhere," says Vojinović.
As he adds, it is more difficult when the fire is developed, although Serbia has "enough" helicopters.
"That's why it's a rather shallow conclusion that the fire caused damage only because Serbia allegedly doesn't have enough helicopters or canards. Fires can't be extinguished only from the air, so even canards aren't magical," adds Vojinović.
Four fires are active in Serbia, and about five hundred people from the emergency sector, volunteer firefighters, the army and other services are engaged in extinguishing them.
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