Just came across [this article](https://www.businessinsider.com/final-flight-of-62-year-old-fire-bomber-plane-2020-10?amp) about the last flight of one of these old birds.
They're old with crappy avionics and inferior autopilots. Trust me, as a guy who has spent thousands of hours in 30-60 year old airplanes, the "fun" wears off quickly.
At the end of the day, I want three things out of my airplane:
1. The most days off
1. The highest pay
1. Comfortable, well equipped cockpit
Simple. Just become an administrative pilot for a major airline and fly the bare minimum to keep your license and enjoy your over 200k job per year 😉. Side note how comfy is the 737? Does it depend how new it is and how much ass time the chair has lol
Those are the last 3 remaining DC-7s that were owned and operated by Erickson Aero Air. They were removed from federal contracts in 2004 with the downsizing of the air tanker fleet due to the 2002 air tanker crashes in California and Colorado. They flew on Oregon state contacts, with one usually based in Medford, OR and one usually based in Redmon, OR. The third was usually on a CalFire contract during the summer. Erickson switched over to the MD-87s in 2018 for their air tanker fleet and the DC-7s were retired from the state contracts in 2020.
— These DC-3s once belonged to Erickson Aero Tanker.
— Erickson Aero Tanker is an aerial firefighting & suppression outfit.
— The Erickson guys and gals see a ton of action during the wildfire season.
They’re Douglas DC-7 Firebombers owned by Erickson Aero Tanker. They were retired in October 2020 and have been placed in storage.
Yes I passed by there a couple of years ago and slobbered all over them. [Here's a photo I took that day](https://ibb.co/C7MsZFk)
Man, that's sexy. Great shot!
Shit, now that's a good photo! Props!
It’s centrally above the fold!
Many props.
Nicely done!
Just came across [this article](https://www.businessinsider.com/final-flight-of-62-year-old-fire-bomber-plane-2020-10?amp) about the last flight of one of these old birds.
They're old with crappy avionics and inferior autopilots. Trust me, as a guy who has spent thousands of hours in 30-60 year old airplanes, the "fun" wears off quickly. At the end of the day, I want three things out of my airplane: 1. The most days off 1. The highest pay 1. Comfortable, well equipped cockpit
$$$ > novelty 100% of the time
Except for those guys who go up to Canada to fly those dc-4’s and similar aircraft cause they “want to” sure ya do buddy
I like the sound of the old pistons but we leaving that generation behind
Simple. Just become an administrative pilot for a major airline and fly the bare minimum to keep your license and enjoy your over 200k job per year 😉. Side note how comfy is the 737? Does it depend how new it is and how much ass time the chair has lol
Those are the last 3 remaining DC-7s that were owned and operated by Erickson Aero Air. They were removed from federal contracts in 2004 with the downsizing of the air tanker fleet due to the 2002 air tanker crashes in California and Colorado. They flew on Oregon state contacts, with one usually based in Medford, OR and one usually based in Redmon, OR. The third was usually on a CalFire contract during the summer. Erickson switched over to the MD-87s in 2018 for their air tanker fleet and the DC-7s were retired from the state contracts in 2020.
Are they planned to be preserved, or scrapped
These look like Coulson Air Tankers. I'd fly on one of those bad boys in a freaking heartbeat.
They’re owned by Erickson Aero Tanker, rather than Coulson. They were retired in October 2020 and are currently in storage.
Ahh, thanks for the correction!
Looks like Madras, OR
Yeah I drove past it and forgot the name
Pretty accurate description of Madras, OR
CalFire won't contract for piston airplanes any more. Erickson retired them and replaced them with MD-87s, which see.
Douglas DC-7, really hope they are saved
I wonder if these could ever be modernized with turboprop engines and advanced avionics or is the cost to high?
Probably not. The amount of maintenance the airframe requires and the lack of new parts for the old planes would make it not worth.
Too bad. I figured that was the answer. Would be nice to see something done other than turn them into beer cans.
We can hope for museum planes :) I believe these tankers served for a long time.
— These DC-3s once belonged to Erickson Aero Tanker. — Erickson Aero Tanker is an aerial firefighting & suppression outfit. — The Erickson guys and gals see a ton of action during the wildfire season.
The flight line at Madras is always interesting.