Three Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment planes headed south to the United States to help fight wildfires there. The planes will work with United States Forest Service for 10 to 14 days, with a possibility of an extension.

Current forest conditions in Saskatchewan have allowed the ministry to make some of its resources, including these aircraft, available to assist other jurisdictions. A pair of Convair 580A air tankers and one Turbo Commander birddog aircraft, along with eight crew members, left Saskatchewan on Tuesday for Boise, Idaho. Staff were briefed before being deployed to Grand Junction, Colorado on June 13 to work under the direction of the United States Forest Service.

“Agreements to share firefighting resources are in place across Canada and the U.S. to make the most effective use of our collective capacity,” Environment Minister Ken Cheveldayoff says.

“Saskatchewan has certainly benefitted from resource sharing agreements during times of high fire activity here, so we’re pleased to be in a position to assist the U.S. at this time.”