US Airmen from the 302nd Airlift Wing, the Air Force Reserve Unit C-130H unit at Peterson AFB, Colorado, flew their first aerial firefighting support missions of the year on 12 June 2013, dropping retardant on the growing Black Forest fire near the unit’s home base in Colorado Springs. Using the US Forest Service-owned Modular Airborne Firefighting System, or MAFFS, 302nd AW crews flew ten missions the first day, releasing approximately 25,000 gallons of fire retardant to try and contain the wildfire, which had spread to nearly 9,000 acres at that point. In May, the 146th AW, the California Air National Guard unit at Channel Islands ANGS, also carried out MAFFS missions from its home base fighting the Camarillo Springs fire.
