The research focus on aerial suppression brings together elements from a number of research projects across the Bushfire CRC. Ultimately the objective is to produce a decision support system that will assist to better utilise the available resources to ensure their effective and efficient use. Particularly for:

• Aircraft managers
• Planning Officers
• Incident Controllers
• State and Regional Co-ordinators
• Chief Officers

The key here is to understand:

• What is at risk?
• What resources are available?
• What are their capabilities?
• What they cost?

These considerations then need to be matched with a measure of the difficulty of suppression for given fuels and weather.

In considering a risk based approach to the management of landscape fire, the relevant elements include:

• prevention (minimising the incidence of wildfire)
• preparedness (the preparation for wildfire occurrence)
• suppression (restricting the spread of a wildfire)
  
• recovery (the post-fire phase).

In developing a ‘Fire Management Business Model’ (Project A4) there is considerable overlap between this theme and the three other outcome areas (or themes), particularly prescribed burning.

As such, some of the adoption products for aerial suppression and prescribed burning have been combined, particularly in the educational area.

Proposed Seminars/Forums, Workshops and Specialist Courses

The majority of educational activities listed under the prescribed burning outcomes are also applicable to understanding the fire management context of aerial suppression. For this reason the commitments listed below should be read in conjunction with those listed under prescribed burning.

Aerial suppression specific commitments include:

1. Aerial suppression industry forum – May 2009

This invitation-only, industry-based forum will enable participants to build an understanding of the impact of the research on the operations of the aircraft industry.

2. Fire Notes

Four Fire Notes relating to aerial suppression have been published. These can be found at
www.bushfirecrc.com . An additional Fire Note is currently being prepared on Guidelines to assist aerial suppression and should be available in April.

3. Specific products

Guidelines to assist in the selection and effective use of aerial suppression resources are currently in preparation. Publication is currently expected to occur in July.