Hynaero Aerial Firefighting Tool is Under Development

Hynaero, a French company, is developing a new generation of aerial firefighting aircraft after extensive consultation with the aerial firefighting community. Hynaero SAS is creating the Fregate F-100 amphibious firefighting aircraft. This purpose-built aircraft is designed with input from existing and potential scooper aircraft operators and agencies and offers several advanced features that differentiate it from the competition.

The Fregate F-100

With the production of the only purpose-built firefighting aircraft, the Canadair CL-415, now owned by De Havilland Canada, suspended since 2015, the Fregate F-100 could become the best option as a more productive firefighting tool.   The F-100 has a capacity that is 67% larger than the CL-415, and the proposed CL-515 will be faster, leading to a net productivity gain of more than 100% per drop. The following illustration shows the size difference between the F-100 and CL-415.

The amphibious design of the aircraft, with scooping capacity from lakes and seas, enables autonomous operations and a higher number of dropping rotations to attack and contain wildfires more quickly. Aircraft that need refilling on the ground cannot deliver the frequency of turnarounds to refill and continue drops rapidly. Several key design considerations have been incorporated into the aircraft,  Cruising speed will be 250 knots, to ensure rapid rotations and faster scooping reloads and return to action, a load of 10 tons of water, the ability to carry 4-5 passengers in an enlarged cockpit, the ability to access lakes and seas, with a 12 second scooping refill, a MTOW of 30 tons, full fly-by-wire flight controls, predictive maintenance with digital twin technology, and a full mission system integrated into avionics for communication and drop coordination. The company will soon enter the final design phase for the aircraft, building on extensive market and product research. Market entry is slated for 2030-2031.

Program Partners

Hynaero has entered into strategic partnerships with several suppliers in Europe and North America for various technologies and engineering support. The company plans to leverage the supply chain and its “design and build” capabilities, applying proven technologies when appropriate. The company will build the aircraft at Bordeaux-Mérignac and has support from several major players in French aerospace, including Airbus, Daher, Safran, Thales, Latécouère, and others, as well as global supply chain players including Honeywell, Raytheon Technologies, Garmin, GKN, and Mitsubishi.

Environmental Benefits

Climate change has led to an alarming growth in wildfires in recent years, growing both in intensity and striking areas traditionally unaffected by them. The environmental impact of wildfires today makes them the most significant single contributor to climate change, from carbon emissions from burning trees to eliminating vegetation that provides the carbon sink to prevent further climate impacts. A major fire has an effect greater than thousands of automobiles or aircraft. As a result, more rapid firefighting is a solution rather than exacerbating climate change and its impacts. The need has become even more imperative than it was a decade ago. The F-100 should provide the most effective aerial firefighting aircraft for rapidly controlling wildfires.

The Market

The company has performed a bottom-up requirements analysis by country and region and found a market for growing and replacing 300-plus aircraft. Conservatively, they estimate that the company could achieve a 50% market share despite the current major player being out of production and planning to re-enter the market on indefinite hold. Nonetheless, having half the market would provide significant revenues and enable a strong return on investment.

Next Steps

Hynareo is finalizing additional partnerships as it seeks funding to transition the concept into a full-sized prototype aerial firefighting aircraft that demonstrates its capabilities.  Long-term plans include an amphibious passenger version for use in island-hopping applications (e.g., Tahiti, Maldives) to expand the market for a versatile design further.

The Bottom Line

With the increasing frequency of fires and the need for more productive firefighting aircraft, the Fregate F-100 could provide twice the efficiency of today’s aging amphibious aircraft, maximizing productivity while minimizing maintenance downtime.  This airplane should fill a niche that can help both save property while reducing environmental damage, which are both worthy goals.  We wish them success.

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