ARFF. ARFF.

The big dog in the arsenal of the airport's fire department has been joined by an even bigger dog to take a bite of the aircraft disasters no one hopes will happen.

The Casper/Natrona County International Airport took delivery of its newest ARFF - Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting vehicle - earlier this month.

"The cool thing about this truck, and it's not normal, is that it can pump and roll as fast as you want," said Chance Warne, the airport's operations and maintenance manager.

Warne and the other members of the airport's fire department, he said, still are learning how to handle the 33-foot-long, 58,000-pound vehicle that can pump up to 1,850 gallons of water a minute and run at 75 mph. The ARFF was made by the Wyoming, Minn.-based Rosenbauer America.

On Thursday, Warne put the new $676,006 ARFF through its paces along some of the runways.

They engaged the automatic six-speed transmission with the push of a button, and the 665 horsepower diesel engine quietly propelled the ARFF along the tarmac.

"Most crash trucks are jerky," Warne said.

While the ride is smooth, the driver needs to monitor the vehicle's stability while the ARFF makes sharp turns. So the driver monitors a gauge showing how much ARFF leans. Too much tilt and the truck tips over.

Fire department Capt. Jim Pattan said the manufacturer installed shocks and springs that stiffen automatically as the vehicle tilts. "The suspension is a race car suspension on steroids."

The pumping system is quiet, too, as a gauge indicated the pressure rising to more than 225 pounds per square inch.

Warne and Pattan pressed the buttons on a joy stick on the console by the driver's seat to activate the turret on the roof and the one on the bumper to shoot water - or if needed a foam and water mixture - up to 200 feet.

Besides water and foam, the new ARFF carries a 500-pound capacity tank for Halotron, a firefighting agent that leaves no residue on sensitive parts of cockpits and jet engines, Pattan said.

Because of the intense smoke and heat generated by an aircraft fire, the ARFF's crew can find the hot spots with a FLIR infrared television monitor.

Warne turned on the FLIR, used a joy stick to pan and tilt the infrared camera on the roof, and zoomed in on a garage door mechanism to find the warm spots on the motor.

Speaking of the roof, crew members can open a hatch in the ceiling to go up top and get a better view of a crash site.

To fight fires on the ground, the ARFF crew can open one of several bays on the truck's exterior and haul five lines, or open compartments to access fire extinguishers.

Other features include a heating system so the plumbing doesn't freeze, halogen lights on the roof, and an air compressor and hose to run pneumatic tools. Hoses dangling from the chassis can douse flames under the truck and create a fire break if the ARFF is driving through a burning field.

The new ARFF supplements the work of a smaller, 1995 ARFF that has seen a lot of use in training exercises.

These vehicles are necessary for the Casper/Natrona County International Airport to better maintain its safety rating, or index, for aircraft more than 90 feet long and less than 126 feet in length.

An "Index B" airport like Casper's needs one vehicle carrying at least 500 pounds of a sodium-based dry chemical, 1,500 gallons of water and a system for producing fire-suppressing foam, according to "Airport Planning & Management," a textbook by Alexander Wells and Seth Young.

The old and new ARFFs exceed those requirements, Airport Manager Glenn Januska said in a news release.

"The ARFF vehicle requirements, both in terms of the truck and response time are a function of the Airport's 'Index,' determined by scheduled commercial air services," Januska said. "This new vehicle will help us ensure the best response to any aircraft emergency."

Reach Tom Morton at (307) 266-0592, or at tom.morton@trib.com.

Dimensions are approximate.

Body: Rosenbauer America Model Panther 1500

Chassis: Rosenbauer rail frame

Engine: Detroit Diesel Corp 60 DDEC V; 14 liter; in-line six cylinder; 665 horsepower at 2,300 rpm

Transmission: Twin Disc TD61-1180, 6-speed fully automatic power shift transmission; all-wheel drive

Acceleration from 0 to 50 mph: less than 25 seconds

Top speed: 75 mph

Length: 33 feet

Width: 11 feet

Height; 12 feet

Wheelbase: 16 feet

Gross vehicle weight: 58,000 pounds

Crew capacity: Three

Water tank capacity: 1,500 gallons

Pump capacity: 1,850 gallons per minute

Foam tank capacity: 210 gallons

Halotron tank capacity: 500 pounds

Cost: $676,006. Federal aviation funds paid for 95 percent of the cost; state aviation funds paid for 3 percent; and the NCIA paid 2 percent.

Sources: Rosenbauer America at www.rosenbaueramerica.com; Casper/Natrona County International Airport.]]->