Apparently it was either FEMA or USFS who turned down the waterbomber

[Mairead]

(from rense.com, but originally allegedly from Pravda)

The Associated Press reported that {two years ago, during the Cerro Grande fire near Los Alamos} then-District IX FEMA director Buddy Young went to the fire and publicly announced, "You will not bring the Russian planes in here: We're not having any Russians coming here and fighting our fires."

But in fact, Robinson pointed out, this has nothing to do with the IL-76 being Russian-made and owned.

The Canadians have their CL-215 tankers and CL-415 SuperScoopers. They developed the CL-215 v which Robinson considers superior to anything the United States has v in 1967, and they've been rebuffed by the Forest Service for 35 years.


http://www.rense.com/general43/still.htm