Tracking Wildfires and Smoke

Given the significant amount of wildfires the nation has experienced, Surdex concluded that the amount of smoke in certain regions could impact aerial acquisition. To manage aircraft in these areas, we have modified our online Flight Tracker tool to include wildfire and smoke data. This enhancement enables our Flight Department to monitor atmospheric/weather conditions and assign acquisition resources accordingly. Knowing when and where acquisition may not be possible enables us to reduce fuel and labor hours spent on unproductive or severely inefficient acquisition missions.