“SMOKE JUMPERS”

Evening Star, Issue 23693, 28 September 1940, Page 3

“SMOKE JUMPERS”

NEW USE FOR PARACHUTE TROOPS FIGHTING FOREST FIRES War-time development has been responsible for many revolutionary changes in peace-time work. The most widely-quoted example is that, of the aeroplane, into which, in the four years of the first World War, was crammed a couple of decades of normal develop-' incut. Some new developments that will revolutionise industry may be expected from the present conflict. Here in Dunedin it is surprising that the first reports of such development should concern parachute troops. At first thought there does not seem to be any legitimate use to which parachute jumpers could be put. FEATHER BED LANDINGS. In America, however, the tests made by the Forest Service on Chelan National Forest in Washington last fall with a crew of parachute jumpers indicated the practicability of dropping fire fighters from aeroplanes to put out small fires in some of the inaccessible back-country areas of the national forests. A" new radiophone has been developed so that the “ smokejumper ” can keep in touch with the plane pilot and with bis headquarters when he reaches the ground. The smoke-jumpers use a specially dc-

signed parachute which has a rate of descent of about 12ft per second and permits a certain amount of steering toward the landing spot. A special chuto harness and protective suit and headgear were also developed to so protect the jumpers that they can land almost anywhere at any elevation —in tall trees or open spaces, or on rough ridges. Jumpers who went down into stands of young pines christened them “ feather-bed landings,” because the small trees null catch a parachute readily and absorb most of the shock on tlieir bending, swaying tops. In order to facilitate descent from tall trees the jumpers carry a coil of light, strong rope. MEN AND MATERIALS.

Planes which deliver the parachuting fire-fighters scout the fire on their first trip over the spot and drop a small test chute with a 101 b sandbag to determine wind drift. Then they circle back and make a second approach, at which time the parachutist descends, and by using the steering Haps on his parachute generally manages to reach the ground close to the selected landing spot. On a third approach the pilot drops the fire-fighting kit, which is carried down by a burlap parachute with a yellow streamer attached to prevent its being lost—a method used by the Forest Ser-

vice .for some years to deliver tons of equipment to back-country fire-fighters. The burlap chute pack contains necessary tools, rations, first aid kit, and the like, but the parachutist will carry with him the new light-weight radio so that he can make contact with the pilot or his headquarters immediately if necessary or can make reports later. Of the number of tests mad® to data in the forests there have been no_ serious accidents of any type, as preliminary experiments were made and studied with dummy drops. The jumpers’* equipment also serves as proteetiva equipment and many times has" prevented what might nave been serious accidents to the jumpers. The chest pack guards against injuries to tha abdomen and chest, and in instances where jumpers have been forced to land in the tops of heavy growth the tops and branches were broken off, but the force of the blows was absorbed by the chest pack. We had an example in Dunedin of tha value a small body of such troops could prove. In other districts where afforestation is more intensively carried out they would prove invaluable. F.ven, one or two men dropped at the right spot could make an enormous difference before a fire reached great proportions. (But our exotic timber holdings have not yet attained the value of tha enormous American tracts.