Eighth AT-802 delivered to Türkiye

The Aviation Department of the General Directorate of Forestry under the Ministry of Forestry of Türkiye (Orman Bakanlığına bağlı Orman Genel Müdürlüğü (OGM) Havacılık Dairesi) received their eighth and last AT-802 Air Tractor for this year. The eight delivered consist of the four subtypes that were ordered by the OGM.

Turkey experienced a devastating summer in 2021 and due to the severe forest fires 250,000 hectares of forest and grass lands were scorched. This resulted in numerous casualties and caused significant economic damage.

However, in the 2022 fire season, the Spanish Titan Firefighting Company was hired to assist in fighting the fires. This showed the effective use of Air Tractor AT-802 aircraft, and this success was a key factor in the Turkish government's decision to adopt this specialized aircraft for firefighting.

In 2023, Türkiye ordered twenty AT-802 aircraft, of which fifteen are in the amphibious Fire Boss configuration and five in the land-based version. The aircraft are built in the US and upgraded to firefighting configurations by Air Tractor in Europe that is based in Viver, Spain. The first four aircraft were delivered in April 2023 and the fleet has now grown to eight. Deliveries are expected to continue until 2027.

 Deliveries so far are:

OR-2021 AT-802 Fire Boss (c/n 802-1051), ex EC-OEK. Configuration: dual-seat Fire Boss

OR-2022 AT-802 Fire Boss (c/n 802-0969), ex EC-NZH. Configuration: dual-seat Fire Boss

OR-2023 AT-802 Fire Boss (c/n 802-0960), ex EC-NYL. Configuration: dual-seat Fire Boss

OR-2024 AT-802A Fire Boss (c/n 802A-0993), ex EC-OAA. Configuration: single-seat Fire Boss

OR-2025 AT-802A Fire Boss (c/n 802A-0997), ex EC-OBH. Configuration: single-seat Fire Boss

OR-2026 AT-802A Fire Boss (c/n 802A-1052), ex EC-OEQ. Configuration: single-seat Fire Boss

OR-2036 AT-802F (c/n 802-1071), ex EC-OGI. Configuration: dual-seat land-based version

OR-2038 AT-802AF (c/n 802A-1083), ex EC-OIH. Configuration: single-seat land-based version

Some explanation of the different configurations:

An off-factory land-based AT-802A has a single seat cockpit. When modified with the firefighting configurations this becomes an AT-802AF.

An off-factory land-based AT-802 has a tandem (two-seat) cockpit. When modified with the firefighting configurations this becomes an AT-802F.

When the firefighting configurations are further upgraded to the amphibious configurations, Wipaire Wipline floats are added and they become water-scooping. This is when they receive the “Fire Boss” type designations:

The AT-802A Fire Boss is a single-seat cockpit amphibious plane with Wipaire Wipline floats added.

The AT-802 Fire Boss is a tandem (two-seat) cockpit amphibious plane with Wipaire Wipline floats added.

Picture: The OR-2023/EC-NYL is seen here during its delivery flight at Bari-Palese on 29 April 2023 sporting the "Türkiye Yüzyılına Nefes" ("Breath for the Turkish Century") titles, Pampillonia Francesco via JetPhotos.