Watch: Military plane repurposed as aerial firefighter

California is the first state to own and operate a C-130 Hercules airtanker after Congress approved the transfer of federal planes to firefighting operations in December 2023.

The plane was retrofitted with a tank that can hold 4,000 gallons (15,000 litres) of fire retardant and a system to release it.

It is the first of seven tankers that California are using to fight the increasing threat of wildfires in the state. California has the biggest aerial firefighting fleet in the world, even prior to these new tankers.