Spanish onshore helicopter services company INAER has unveiled a new fire-extinction management system that can be operated with a helicopter or fixed-wing aircraft.
The Alicante-based company developed the Einforex system last year, working in conjunction with the Spanish ministry of the environment and the regional government of the north-western Spanish region of Galicia, which conducted a trial of the system while fighting forest fires outside Zaragoza in the third quarter.
Einforex deploys three cameras - one high-resolution, one infrared and one video - to capture images that are transmitted to the emergency command post in real time. The images can be represented on 3-D catagrophic maps using software provided as part of the package.
According to INAER, the software is also capable of predicting the path of active fire fronts, calculating their speed, highlighting populated areas and potential hazards along the fire's path, and identifying natural fire barriers, access/evacuation routes and support infrastructure for firefighters and citizens.
INAER is offering Einforex as a service priced on a per-campaign basis. Director of projects Jose Luis Saiz estimates the price of a three-month campaign at €60,000 ($80,000). He says Einforex is being considered for use in campaigns next year by Portugual's national civil protection service and by its national air authority.
Source: Flight International
