Collaboration for Effective Wildfire Fighting

Amersfoort, March , 2025 – From March 3 to 5, an intensive three-day exercise took place at the military site ‘De Vlasakkers’ in Amersfoort. This exercise, named Fire Bucket Operations (FBO), was organized by the Royal Netherlands Air Force, the North and East Gelderland Safety Region (VNOG), and the Netherlands Institute for Public Safety (NIPV). The goal was to test and improve the collaboration between various organizations in fighting wildfires using helicopter water bombing.

During the exercise, the Defense Helicopter Command (DHC) and the Netherlands Fire Service worked closely together. The VNOG Heli-team represented the Netherlands Fire Service, while the NIPV coordinated the preparations and policy aspects. The Royal Netherlands Air Force and VNOG carried out the firefighting operations, with support from the Royal Netherlands Army for the training site, the Mobile Air Operations Team (MAOT) for communication with pilots, and the Digital Reconnaissance team for drone surveillance of nature areas.

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Two Chinook helicopters from the Air Force were deployed, equipped with large water bags, known as fire buckets. These were filled with water from the Eem River and then flown to the fire area. On the instructions of the MAOT and the heli-team, the firefighting water was precisely dropped to prevent further spread of the fire.

The exercise was meticulously prepared with detailed plans and various scenarios to test the collaboration and deployment of resources. The aim was to make wildfires more manageable, especially in locations that are difficult for ground-based firefighters to reach.

The three-day exercise proved to be a valuable experience for all participants. The involved organizations are now more aware of their tasks and responsibilities, and the strengths and areas for improvement have been identified. This contributes to the further enhancement of the quality of wildfire fighting with helicopters and fire service expertise.




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