Semi-expendable Unmanned Aerial Vehicle for forest fire suppression

Abstract

Rapid detection systems and other surveillance and real-time monitoring systems have become more and more a reality in recent years. The information generated is very useful for avoiding risks and to optimally manage the available firefighting resources. However, there are lots of scenarios for which a rapid and effective response is not possible because of strong winds, the absence of daylight or difficulty in gaining access to a specific location with conventional aerial assets. This paper presents a new forest fire suppression tool capable of handling all these factors: Flamingo (Forest fLAMes INtelliGent Outputter), a low-cost semi-expendable Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) with a single-use deposit loaded with fire retardants. © 2010 WIT Press.