Review of aviation safety aspects of aerial firefighting in Australia

Summary

An ATSB statistical report into aerial firefighting occurrences between July 2000 and March 2020 (AR-2020-022) found an increase in occurrences per year over recent years. The report also found an increase in average size of aircraft and complexity of operations. Within the data was the 2019-2020 bushfire season which the National Aerial Firefighting Centre advised demanded activity of around four times the usual rate.  

Additionally, the CSIRO has projected an increase in land use putting people into conflict with bushfires, and increased dangerous bushfire weather over the coming years. 

Consequently, the ATSB is conducting a safety study into aerial firefighting in Australia to identify any systemic safety issues and other learning opportunities that could enhance the safety of aerial firefighting operations. 

The safety study is divided into 4 parts: 

• Part A, AS-2021-015a, was published on 13 May 2026, and presents the key safety themes reported by interviewees. It does not contain findings. The goal of Part A is to better understand the aviation hazards interviewees faced, and the opportunities they could see to improve the safety of aerial firefighting operations.
• Part B, AS-2021-015b, will present the results from a survey of NAFC-registered aerial firefighting pilots. 
• Part C, AS-2025-015c, will expand upon the ATSB statistical report AR-2020-022 and identify key trends in Australian aerial firefighting occurrences. 
• The final report, AS-2025-015, will present a synthesis of the conclusions in Parts A to C to identify any systemic safety issues and other learning opportunities that could enhance the safety of aerial firefighting operations.