N744ST Converted into a freighter and sold to National Airlines
Primary users
Global SuperTanker Services Evergreen International Aviation (former)
Number built
3
Developed from
Boeing 747
The 747 Supertanker is a retired aerial firefighting airtanker derived from various Boeing 747 models. The aircraft is rated to carry up to 19,600 US gallons (74,000 L) of fire retardant or water. It is the largest aerial firefighting aircraft in the world.[1]
Initially developed by Evergreen International Aviation, the first Supertanker was based on a 747-200 (N470EV, tanker/tail number 947), but never entered service. The second Supertanker (N479EV, tanker/tail number 979) was based on a 747-100 originally manufactured by Boeing in 1971 for Delta Air Lines.[2] It entered service for the first time in 2009, fighting a fire in Cuenca, Spain, and made its first American operation on August 31, 2009 at the Oak Glen Fire in California. It is no longer in service.[3][4][5]
The third 747 Supertanker was developed by Global Supertanker Services (which acquired most of Evergreen's assets), who owns and operates the aircraft currently. The Global Supertanker (N744ST, tanker/tail number 944) is a Boeing 747-400 dubbed the Spirit of John Muir. It was certified for firefighting flights by the Federal Aviation Administration in September 2016 and fought fires in Chile and Israel before being contracted by U.S. officials to fight California wildfires in 2017.[6] It also took part in firefighting in Bolivia in August 2019. It was retired in 2021.
^Cite error: The named reference coloradospringsgazette was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Aircraft - N-Number Inquiry". Registry. FAA. October 31, 2014. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
^El 'superavión' bombero no fue efectivo en incendio Serranía de Cuenca Archived October 6, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, ABC (in Spanish; dead link).
^Oak Glen Incident and Pendleton Branch, Rim of the world Archived September 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine (map).
^Oak Glen Incident, Inciweb Archived January 10, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, InciWeb
^Firefighting Boeing 747 takes on California wildfires, 2018 Aug 8 Seattle: Biz journals.
The 747Supertanker is a retired aerial firefighting airtanker derived from various Boeing 747 models. The aircraft is rated to carry up to 19,600 US gallons...
"microfighters", was considered technically feasible in 1973. Evergreen 747Supertanker – A Boeing 747-200 modified as an aerial application platform for fire fighting...
government agencies in the U.S. as well as in other nations. Its Boeing 747Supertanker aircraft was used as an firefighting air tanker from Israel to Mexico;...
of car bombs and tunnels. An Evergreen 747Supertanker aerial firefighting aircraft, based on the Boeing 747-400, arrived in Israel to assist against...
largest aerial firefighter ever used is a Boeing 747 aerial firefighter, known as the Global Supertanker, that can carry 19,600 US gallons (74,200 L) fed...
transferred to another National Airlines 747 eight years later, which registered as N936CA and former Global SuperTanker Services aircraft. "Lori" was named...
December 4, the Israeli government decided to hire Evergreen's Boeing 747Supertanker to help extinguish the blaze. The plane landed at 01:00 at Ben Gurion...
Colorado-based Boeing 747Supertanker (also known as Global SuperTanker) to conduct firefighting missions over the Bolivian Amazon. The 747Supertanker is the largest...
Kitchen a victim of Nataf fire". Gabbert, Bill (November 26, 2016). "747Supertanker drops on a fire in Israel". Fire Aviation. Gross, Judah Ari (November...
vacation market. 19 February – The Evergreen 747Supertanker makes its first flight. Based on the Boeing 747-200 cargo aircraft and capable of carrying...
from the U.S. Forest Service, and a private company sent an Evergreen 747Supertanker with a crew of 12. The United States has also contributed US$1,580...
military intelligence offices in Tripoli. 9 June The U.S. Evergreen 747Supertanker, the world's largest firefighting aircraft, deploys to Arizona to assist...
(VLATS) and heavy-lift helicopters become available. The largest is the 747Supertanker with a carrying capacity of 74,000 litres. Experience and research...
Slovak airline SkyEurope files for bankruptcy. The U.S. Evergreen 747Supertanker, the world's largest aerial firefighting aircraft, see its first service...
which operated the Boeing 747 as a cargo or tanker aircraft to locations around the world. The 747-200 "Evergreen Supertanker" was capable of delivering...
the Wayback Machine, The Union-Democrat, November 29, 2018 Video of 747Supertanker dropping fire retardant on southern perimeter of Donnell fire on August...
On the morning of March 16, 1978, the US-owned, Liberian registered supertanker, the Amoco Cadiz, went aground off the coast of Brittany. Over the following...
Stockholm: PAN/Norstedt. Ahlmark, Per (1971). Sveket mot kusterna : om supertankers, oljeskydd, Östersjön, Brofjorden och riksplanering. Stockholm: Aldus/Bonnier...
Global Information