N.W.T. gov't spends $26M on 8 new Fireboss water bombers

Newly-elected Northwest Territories MLAs are following through with plans to spend about $26 millionforeight new water bombers.

This is the first time the territorial government has bought new water bombers, which are used to fight fires. It inherited the current fleet of CanadairC-215s, which were introduced in 1969,from the federal government for $1.

The minister of environment and natural resources, Wally Schumann, says it makes more sense to buy the new Air Tractor 802 Fireboss aircraft than to upgrade the old fleet.

"I think the cost of doing that, from everything I've seen, would have been four times or five times the cost of purchasing these new Firebosses," he said.

The government plans to issue a request for proposals this spring for the operation and maintenance of the fleet.

Itcould have asked contractors to provide a fleet of aircraft as well as operate and maintain them, but Schumann says many northern companies would not have been able to bid on it.

"The biggest benefit ofus, the GNWT, owning a fleet of aircraft is the larger chance of Northern aviation companies to participate in the operation of the tanker based fleet," Schumann said.

In the past, the 10-year contract has typically been worth about $25 million.

Schumann said the government hired a fairness commissioner and a technical team to put together the RFP.

The new aircraft are much smaller than the ones they're replacing, and they require only one pilot instead of two. They can also land on smaller lakes, closer to the fires they're fighting.

The N.W.T.'s worst fire season on record was in 2014 there were 385 wildland fires, which burned3.4 million hectares of land.The fires were fought at a cost of $56.1 million.

Last summer was the second-worst.

The new Air Tractor 802 Fireboss aircraft, which are built in Texas, are on track to be delivered in the spring of 2017.