Lower Saxony relies on helicopters in the fight against forest fires!

Lower Saxony relies on helicopters in the fight against forest fires!

Goslar, Deutschland - In the fight against forest fires, Lower Saxony has made a strategic change of course. Instead of relying on fire aircraft, which have been majority abroad in recent years and only once in Saxony-Anhalt, the state focuses on helicopters in 2025. The Interior Ministry sees this step as a confirmation for its decision, which is specially tailored to the geographical and climatic conditions of Lower Saxony. Interior Minister Daniela Behrens (SPD) emphasizes the positive experiences from the past and emphasizes the flexibility of the helicopters, which can end up in makeshift landing sites and thus enable more frequent water drops. The ndr conventional aircraft.

The Situation in the past summer season was revealing. During a forest fire lasting several days in Goslar, both police helicopters and a fire -fighting aircraft were used, whereby the aircraft was only able to fly to a limited extent due to refreshing winds. In the time of the intensive fire fighting, it turned out that the helicopters warm up four times as much water and were therefore more effective. These findings meant that Lower Saxony is now targeting helicopters in order to meet the requirements of forest fire fighting in the region. In the years 2023 and 2024, two fire -fighting aircraft were stationed in Braunschweig, but they hardly contributed to fire fighting on site - instead, they often flew in other European countries. And also the n-tv added that two helicopters of the state police and helicopters of a third party in Lower Saxony ready.

training and operational readiness

So that the emergency services are well prepared, the helicopter relay of the federal police in Gifhorn and other units train regularly. These exercises take place about three to six times a year, mainly in spring, in order to be optimally prepared for the forest fire season. The close cooperation with the fire brigade is particularly emphasized and considered important to increase the efficiency of the operations. The special needs for forest fires are also discussed, as the Zeit

Another example of the adjustments in Lower Saxony is the Harz district. With a Polish company, the latter has concluded a contract for a fire -fighting aircraft by 2028 and is therefore the only district in Germany that relies on soil forces and air support with a fire aircraft. However, the main focus is clearly on the use of helicopters.

Overall, it turns out that Lower Saxony seems to be on the right track with the decision to rely on helicopters. So that the forests can be protected in the future, the state remains in search of optimal solutions for fire fighting, while helicopter already play a crucial role in daily operations.