"The aircraft will be a reinforcement that gives better ability to extinguish fires from the air in Northern Europe as early as summer 2020," Jakob Wernerman, Head of Unit for National Operations and Civil Protection at MSB, the Swedish Agency for Social Protection and Contingency, said in a press release.
The agreement allows for two more aircraft for 2021-2023. The plan is to be located at Skavsta in Nyköping and has a capacity of 3,000 liters of water. MSB has budgeted for a cost of SEK 30 million for 2020. If the plan is joined to the EU, they will finance 80-90 percent of the cost, and if other countries utilize them, the nations will bear the operational costs.
training ActionSaab and MSB will also jointly develop working methods for the use of the plan.
- To trap water from the air with scooping aircraft is different from working with helicopters in forest fires. Experience in working with scooping aircraft is not present in all rescue services in Sweden. That is why we need to learn together and develop an efficient way of working, says Jakob Wernerman.