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Ask HN: Next Gen, Slow, Heavy Lift Firefighting Aircraft Specs?

• westurner 2y ago
  # Next-Gen Firefighting Aircraft (working title: NGFFA) ## Roadmap - [ ] Brainstorm challenges and solutions; new sustainable approaches and time-tested methods - [ ] Write a grant spec - [ ] Write a legislative program funding request ## Challenges - Challenge: Safety; Risk to personnel and civilians - Challenge: Diving into fire is dangerous for the human aircraft operator - Challenge: Vorticity due to fire heat; fire CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) -- The verticals that updraft and downdraft off a fire are dangerous for pilots and expensive, non-compostable aircraft. - Challenge: Water drifts away before it hits the ground due to the release altitude, wind, and fire air currents - Challenge: Water shortage - Challenge: Water lift aircraft shortage - Task: Pour thousands of gallons (or Canadian litres) of water onto fire - Task: Pour a line, a circle, or other patterns to contain fire - Task: Process seawater quickly enough to avoid property damage with untreated ocean salt water, for example https://www.google.com/search?q=fluid+vorticity+fire+plane https://www.google.com/search?q=fluid+vorticity+fire+plane ## Solutions - Are Quadcopters (or n-copters) more stable than helicopters or planes in high-wind fire conditions? - Fire CFD modeling for craft design. - Light, durable aerospace-grade hydrogen vessels - Intermodally transportable containers - Are there stackable container-sized water vessels for freight transport? - Floating, towable seawater processing and loading capability. -- Process seawater for: domestic firefighting, disaster relief, -- Fill vessels at sea. - "Starlite" as a flame retardant; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlite https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlite - starlite youtuber #Replication FWIU: [ cornstarch, flour, sugar, borax ] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlite#Replication https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starlite#Replication - Notes re: "xPrize Wildfire – $11M Prize Competition" (2023) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35658214 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35658214 - Hydrogels, Aerogels - (Hemp) Aerogels absorb oil better than treated polyurethane foam and hair. - EV fire blanket, industry cartridge spec - Non-flammable batteries; unpressurized Sodium Ion, Proton batteries, Twisted Carbon Nanotube batteries - Compostable batteries - Cloud seeding and firefighting ## Reference material - Aerial firefighting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerial_firefighting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerial_firefighting - Aerial firefighting > Comparison table of fixed-wing, firefighting tanker airplanes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerial_firefighting#Comparison_table_of_fixed-wing,_firefighting_tanker_airplanes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerial_firefighting#Comparison...
• westurner 2y ago
  - Spec: [Firefighting] Aircraft should have Drone ID receivers, perhaps integrated with ADS-B