Observer pilots are being trained to protect forests in the Krasnoyarsk Territory

In the south of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, the final stage of training pilot observers for the regional Forest Fire Center is taking place. Three cadets have already started training flights on aircraft. The training also involves specialists from the region’s aviation service, who have thousands of hours of flight experience and the status of instructor-examiner.

The cadets practice practical skills on various types of aircraft. They carry out air patrols on a light-engine Cessna aircraft; when a simulated forest fire is detected, they transmit information to the control center, calculate the necessary forces and means for extinguishing, and issue a report in the form of a pennant. On board the An-2 they learn to throw out sighting tapes to calculate the landing site of parachutists-firefighters, and also simulate the release of water from a spillway device to the edge of a fire.

Previously, future observation pilots completed a theoretical course in forest fire protection, air navigation, radio communications, forest pyrology and a number of other disciplines. We practiced landing, rescue and simulator training using flight simulators. After flight practice and successfully passed testing at the Federal Air Transport Agency, beginners will have to work 45 hours in flight together with experienced flight instructors.

“Beginner pilot observers will have to gain experience in the new fire season. The number of air patrol routes in the region has increased – from 94 to 103. Their length is 54,631 kilometers. We train additional specialists to work in these areas. Aviation makes it possible to control remote and hard-to-reach territories, and if outbreaks are detected, to promptly deliver forest special forces groups to extinguish them,” said Andrey Bambulenko, deputy director of the regional Forest Fire Center for flight service.

Let us remind you that an observer pilot is one of the rarest professions in the world, since it combines the functions of a navigator, a forester and a firefighting manager. There are about 400 such specialists in the country, more than fifty of them work in the Krasnoyarsk Territory.

Previously, with the support of the Governor of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Mikhail Kotyukov, 12 existing air units of the regional Forest Fire Center were strengthened and one new one was opened in the village of Turukhansk. Forest firefighters continue to receive equipment and special equipment. Strengthening the region's air service will make it possible to more effectively fight fires in forests and reduce the area covered by fire. These measures are being implemented within the framework of the national project “Ecological Well-Being”.

Governor of the Krasnoyarsk Territory