Could Hobby Planes Interfere with Wildfire Battles?

We have all seen them - heck, some of us have had them at some point in our childhoods - buzzing around front yards and in parks. They are the model remote-control or wireless controlled airplanes and helicopters that we so enjoy as we pretend to be a pilot.

Apparently, some of that pretending is starting to affect the work of real pilots, and these little hobby planes may give wildfires a distinct advantage - an unintended consequence of playtime.

It has been reported already this year that three "drones," or small unmanned aircraft that may well be hobby planes, helicopters or small gliders, have been spotted very near the restricted airspace allowed for firefighting aircraft, and those sightings have wildfire managers and firefighting aircraft pilots nervous.

The Federal Aviation Administration allows for restricted airspace exclusively for firefighting planes to drop retardant in the area of active wildfires, and that area is restricted only to those aircraft - commercial and private jets and even small drone-like aircraft are not allowed in the airspace in order that the area can be clear for the maneuvers that these firefighting aircraft need to make to do their drop runs.

The three drone reports have been around wildfires in Oregon and California this year, and are up from just one such sighting near an active wildfire in all of 2013. Wildfire managers are concerned for their pilots in that if a drone is spotted in the restricted airspace, they could ground the firefighting planes indefinitely until there is assurance that the entire airspace is clear.

And of course, as these retardant drops are based a lot on timing of the winds, the direction and intensity of the fire and the best location for the drop at a certain point in time, any delay or suspension of air drops gives the fire a decided advantage to put more firefighters in harm's way and potentially damage more structures or land.

Usually, all aircraft in and around a wildfire area have communication with each other so there are no issues with airspace compromises. But with recreational hobby planes, there is no direct communication with the owner or operator, so they are very unpredictable as to what they will do and how high or far they will go. FAA regulations, however, restrict these aircraft to an altitude below 400 feet, a good distance away from airports and a requirement that the aircraft be in sight of the operator at all times. Some of those regulations, however, are supposed to be stricter when near an active wildfire zone.

"If they're going to be flying these things, they need to educate themselves," said Mike Ferris, spokesman for the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.