In response to the outbreak of large-scale forest fires in South Korea, there are calls for the introduction of an aerial fire suppression system that uses Air Force transport planes. What is this system?

Forest fires have been occurring all over South Korea since the 21st of last month, and the scale of damage is the largest in the country's history. Although the fires were put out in the afternoon of the 30th of last month, about 48,000 hectares of forest have been burned.
Thirty people have been confirmed dead. According to the Korea Forest Service, the occurrence of forest fires in South Korea has doubled in the last 40 years. The area burned when a forest fire does occur is also becoming larger.
Many firefighting vehicles and fire engines were deployed to extinguish the fire, but it took a long time to bring it under control. Experts have suggested that the number of firefighting vehicles and HYERI helicopters should be increased, and
There are also calls for the introduction of an aerial fire suppression system using air force transport aircraft to replace HYERI. Since the 21st, multiple wildfires have broken out in various parts of South Korea.
As the damage spread, the Korean government issued a national mobilization order to all firefighters nationwide, informing them that they were on high alert. Despite days of fierce firefighting efforts, 30 people died and approximately 33,000 people were affected.
The damage was particularly concentrated in North Gyeongsang Province, an area rich in cultural heritage sites, including the burning of Gounsa Temple, which was built in the 7th century in Uiseong County.
Prime Minister Han Deok-soo, who is acting as president in place of impeached President Yoon Seok-yeol, held a press conference at the Government Complex in Seoul on the 29th of last month.
Han, who chaired the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters for Fire Response, said, "The government has a heavy responsibility to do everything it can to help those affected by the wildfires recover quickly.
"I feel a sense of responsibility," he said, adding, "The nation's top priority is the safety of its people. From now on, I want all agencies to come together as one and do their utmost to restore the damage caused by the wildfires and provide support to the victims."
As wildfires in South Korea have become year-round and larger in scale, experts have called for the need to increase the number of firefighting and disaster prevention HYERI helicopters and firefighting vehicles.
According to the daily, the ruling People's Power Party said that the largest opposition party, the Democratic Party of Korea, which holds a majority of seats, unilaterally processed the budget bill at the National Assembly late last year, and the additional budget for the forestry project HYERI was not realized.
"The introduction of the forest HYERI system was a project that not only the government but also the ruling and opposition parties agreed was necessary," said Rep. Park Suyeong, who is a member of the People Power Party and the secretary of the National Assembly's Strategy and Finance Committee.
However, the Democratic Party of Korea unilaterally cut the budget, which resulted in failure. The feared large-scale forest fires broke out this spring, and the people are now paying the price."
Heo Young, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea and secretary of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, said, "Rather than blaming the National Assembly for not being able to increase the budget, we should have included the budget for introducing the forest HYERI Copter in the government proposal in advance.
"It was the right direction to include it. I also voiced my opinion about increasing the budget, but the government didn't say anything," he countered.
In addition, since it took a long time to put out the forest fire this time, HYERI
There are also calls for the introduction of an aerial fire suppression system using air force transport aircraft instead of helicopters.
On the 28th of last month, the lawmaker pointed out that the recent wildfires occurred simultaneously, and that there are limitations to conventional response methods. He called for consideration of the introduction of the system.
South Korea has responded to forest fires mainly through HYERI. However, most HYERI can only transport 1,000 to 3,000 liters of water at a time, so they are not effective in putting out large-scale forest fires.
"Flight conditions such as night, fog, smoke, and strong winds make it virtually impossible to extinguish fires," he said.
It is a modular forest fire suppression system that has been introduced in 14 countries around the world. It does not require a special aircraft structure and can be installed in the cargo bay inside a C-130 transport aircraft. It can suppress approximately 10,100 fires during high-speed, low-altitude flight.
"It can drop anywhere from 0 to 13,000 liters of water in just five seconds, creating a firebreak up to 20 meters wide and 400 meters long," he said, explaining the advantages of the system.
Rep. Yoo said of the system, "Normally, it can perform its original mission as a transport aircraft, but in the event of a disaster such as a forest fire, it can be quickly transformed into a fire suppression platform.
This has great benefits in terms of facility operation efficiency and budget reduction. Considering the large-scale forest fires that occur every year and the scale of damage they cause, discussions on the introduction of this system are ongoing.
is necessary," he said.