Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act of 2025
The Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act of 2025 would reauthorize and expand the Department of Defense’s authority to sell aircraft and related parts for wildfire suppression, updating the authority originally granted by the Wildfire Suppression Aircraft Transfer Act of 1996. The bill explicitly adds water as an acceptable suppressant to be included in these sales, and it narrows how sold aircraft or services may be used to only support wildfire suppression activities. It also sets a new window for exercising this authority, starting from the date of enactment and ending on October 1, 2035. In short, the bill extends and clarifies DoD surplus sales for aerial firefighting, broadens the range of suppressants (to include water), and establishes a ten-year authorization period.
Key Points
- 1Expands authorized suppression materials to include water in addition to fire retardant when selling aircraft and parts for wildfire suppression.
- 2Clarifies that aircraft or services sold under this authority may be used only to provide aircraft services for wildfire suppression purposes.
- 3Updates definitional references to reflect the inclusion of water as an allowable suppression agent.
- 4Establishes a new authorization period: from the enactment date of the act to October 1, 2035.
- 5Makes a technical rewrite of the relevant subsections to align with the new period and use restrictions.