An aerial valve for a liquid container (e.g., a bag or a tank) suspended or otherwise carried by a firefighting aircraft includes an axially compressible tubular diaphragm. To open and close the valve, a motorized leadscrew raises and lowers a flow stopper relative to a discharge opening. The tubular diaphragm creates an air chamber above the flow stopper, so the full weight of the liquid in the container is not bearing down against the flow stopper. Thus, less force is needed to lift the flow stopper from its closed position, making the valve easier to open. Some examples of the aerial valve include features that make it wear resistant, easy to service, reprogram remotely, inexpensive to ship, and useful as a replacement for existing valves.

An aircraft for carrying and dispersing one or more firefighting agents includes a fuselage defining an interior space within the aircraft and bisected into a main deck and a lower deck. A pair of wings are coupled to the fuselage. A first storage tank is positioned within the main deck and forward of the pair of wings. A second storage tank is positioned within the main deck and aft of the pair of wings. At least a portion of first discharge ducting is positioned in the lower deck, where the first discharge ducting fluidly connects the first storage tank to discharge outlets disposed in an underbelly of the fuselage. At least a portion of second discharge ducting is positioned in the lower deck, where the second discharge ducting fluidly connects the second storage tank to discharge outlets disposed in the underbelly of the fuselage.

This patent is about fighting Wildfires and Large fires. Wildfires start from small fires. By the time people know a wildfire is burning in a remote area, it has grown so big that it is difficult to control or to extinguish. There are two steps to fight wildfires: to know it faster or earlier while the wildfire is small and to fight the fire efficiently. Large fires are explosions causing a factory or a train to burn. They are difficult to control by ordinary fire fighting techniques. An entity will have to monitor an area in real time using information from satellites and strategically placed monitoring thermal imaging devices and cameras near or in forests. Once a wildfire is confirmed, helicopters, airplanes and/or drones will be used to spread pellets or powder of dry ice on the fires. If necessary, water will be sprayed or spread after that.

A firefighting system includes a base plate having an opening and configured to receive a sensor, a top plate spaced apart from the base plate, a valve body disposed between the base plate and the top plate, a plurality of guide rods spaced around the base plate opening and disposed between the base plate and the top plate and coupled to the base plate, the plurality of guide rods and the top plate configured to support vertical displacement of the valve body, an actuator configured to vertically displace the valve body, and a constant flow rate control system configured to control the actuator to adjust a valve aperture formed between the valve body and the base plate.

A firefighting float plane having a fuselage, one or more wings, two floats, a water scoop associated with each float for filling a water tank of the firefighting float plane, and systems and/or methods for deploying the water scoops to prevent (and/or mitigate the effects of) asymmetric deployment and/or retraction of the water scoops.

A free motion valve system is disclosed. The free motion valve system includes (a) a base platform configured to be attached to a lower opening of a firefighting bucket, the platform having at least one open area configured to allow water to enter and exit the bucket; and (b) a valve assembly including a plate structure configured to move between a closed position in which the plate structure covers the open area and an open position in which water can move through the opening, the valve assembly being configured so that the plate structure moves freely toward the open position in response to upward pressure against a lower surface of the plate structure. Methods of using the free motion valve system with firefighting buckets are also disclosed.

A mobile firefighting installation for firefighting helicopter bucket filling operations is provided. The installation includes a container with a vessel having an upper opening extending across a portion of the upper surface and one or more conduits extending from a water source. The conduits are configured to transfer water to the one or more containers via a port in the container or, in the absence of the ports, via the open or openable tops. Also provided is a container configured for use in firefighting helicopter bucket filling operations. The container includes a vessel having a flat upper surface and an upper opening extending across a majority portion of the upper surface.

A container configured to hold fire extinguishing material and to be aerially deployable over a fire for releasing the fire extinguishing material over the fire includes a skid plate and a restraint strap coupled to the skid plate. A box assembly is positionable on the skid plate and includes a box body including a wall having an upper edge, with the restraint strap being connectable to the wall. A box strap is connected to the box body. A bag is positionable within the box body and is configured to receive the fire extinguishing material, with the bag being closable to retain the fire extinguishing material received therein. A lid is positionable on the box body, with the lid having a main panel and a lid strap connected to the main panel. The lid strap is connectable to the box strap to secure the lid to the box assembly.

In the field of agriculture and aerial firefighting, some example vent systems for aircraft fluid dispersion tanks include a combination of features that greatly minimizes the vent system's weight. Some examples of the vent system include a generally planar valve plug rigidly attached to a flexurally rigid but axially extendible strut. An upper end of the strut is suspended from a pivotal connector mounted centrally above the valve seat associated with the valve plug. As the vent closes, the pivotal connector ensures the valve plug can pivot into central alignment with the valve seat. In some examples, the valve plug includes a frusto-spherical outer perimeter to compensate for possible deviation in the connector's desired central alignment over the valve seat.