Why The 10?

 10 Tanker’s Appeal for an Exclusive Use Contract with USFS

Overview

Our mission is to bring a new level of capability to the national aerial firefighting arsenal. The DC-10s bring more capability to the fire than any other fixed-wing tankers flying. The DC-10′s combination of capacity, speed, turnaround time, and constant flow delivery system is unparalleled.

If contracted on exclusive use a small fleet of DC-10s can substantially improve the agencies’ ability to effectively strike and control wildfires. Rapid initial deployment of DC-10s on fires before they become “mega-fires” is becoming a proven, cost-effective strategy.

Why a Call-When-Needed Contract is not Sufficient

A Call-When-Needed contract will not sustain the existence of DC-10s for national use. Exclusive use contracting is more cost effective and reduces response time dramatically. 10 Tanker serves a single purpose and is dependent on annual contracts to keep the company sustainable. Unlike smaller aviation assets with alternative uses, a large air tanker is dedicated to aerial firefighting and must be contracted for the entire fire season to provide adequate incentive to the contracting company given its massive fixed investment.

Without a multi-year exclusive use contract, these capital intensive assets will either seek business elsewhere, or be permanently stored until such utilization can be obtained. A sound national policy would have multiple DC-10s for use throughout the 49 states from April through November. In a recent 15 day period one DC-10 flew 24 missions on seven fires in five states from three basses, delivering more than 250,000 gallons of retardant effectively.

An exclusive use contract would guarantee multiples of this level of protection throughout the nation. An adequate fleet of DC-10s will significantly enhance and easily integrate into any future USFS fleet scenario.

DC-10s are More Effective, Less Costly

• Provides an enhanced line length and width to assist containment efforts.

• Cost per gallon of suppressant delivered is lowered dramatically.

• Volume and turn-around time combine to bring more suppressant to a fire in a timely fashion.

Reducing the Cost of Mega-Fires

Fire suppression can be extremely costly. However, DC-10s provide a first strike capability that can reduce overall costs and damage. Independent research shows that “mega-fires” are far more expensive than the annual cost of a DC-10.