Neptune Aviation Services Inc. is an

aerial firefighting Aerial firefighting, also known as waterbombing, is the use of aircraft and other aerial resources to Wildfire suppression, combat wildfires. The types of aircraft used include fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. Smokejumpers and rappellers ar ...

company based out of Missoula International Airport in

Missoula, Montana Missoula ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Missoula County, Montana, United States. It is located along the Clark Fork River near its confluence with the Bitterroot and Blackfoot rivers in western Montana and at the convergence of five ...

. It provides aerial support and firefighting to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

and throughout the world. Founded in 1993, Neptune Aviation is known for

, aviation maintenance,

fixed-base operator A fixed-base operator (FBO) is an organization granted the right by an airport to operate at the airport and provide aeronautical services such as fueling, hangaring, tie-down, and parking, aircraft rental, aircraft maintenance, flight instruction ...

and

air charter Air charter is the business of renting an entire aircraft (i.e., chartering) as opposed to individual aircraft seats (i.e., purchasing a ticket through a traditional airline). Regulation Charter – also called air taxi or ad hoc – flight ...

operations. Neptune is registered as a privately owned aerial firefighting company with the

National Wildlife Federation The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) is the largest private, nonprofit conservation education and advocacy organization in the United States, with over six million members and supporters, and 51 state and territorial affiliated organizations (i ...

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 United States National Forest, national forests and 20 United States Natio ...

and

Canadian Wildlife Federation The Canadian Wildlife Federation () (CWF) is a Canadian non-profit organization dedicated to wildlife conservation. History and mission The Canadian Wildlife Federation was founded in 1961 and chartered in 1962. The Canadian Wildlife Federatio ...

. In 2015, Neptune provided aerial support for almost 125 fires, mostly in the

Western United States The Western United States (also called the American West, the Western States, the Far West, the Western territories, and the West) is List of regions of the United States, census regions United States Census Bureau. As American settlement i ...

History

Neptune Aviation was founded by Marta Amelia Timmons in 1993 following the purchase of Black Hills Aviation in

Alamogordo, New Mexico Alamogordo () is a city in and the county seat of Otero County, New Mexico, United States. A city in the Tularosa Basin of the Chihuahuan Desert, it is bordered on the east by the Sacramento Mountains and to the west by Holloman Air Force ...

. Shortly thereafter, operations were moved to their current facilities in

. Neptune Aviation's primary focus is aerial firefighting and Neptune operates a fleet of nine

British Aerospace 146 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Avro International Aerospace manufa ...

jet aircraft equipped with the Active Response drop system capable of delivering a payload of 3,000 gallons of fire retardant. Neptune's operations also include Northstar Jet – a

Fixed-base operator A fixed-base operator (FBO) is an organization granted the right by an airport to operate at the airport and provide aeronautical services such as fueling, hangaring, tie-down, and parking, aircraft rental, aircraft maintenance, flight instruction ...

company offering flight services (fuel, ramp services, maintenance and hangar space), a flight school, Neptune Aviation Charter, Non-Destructive Testing services, and a FAA Part 145 Certified Repair Station (FAA CRS NI6R011N). At that time during the mid-to-late 90s, 14 aviation services and a nationwide fleet of 44 aircraft, provided aerial firefighting services under 3-year exclusive use contracts with the

. Of the 44, Neptune formerly operated 6 P2V Neptune airtankers. Since its inception, Neptune has been successful in acquiring and reacquiring

airtanker Aerial firefighting, also known as waterbombing, is the use of aircraft and other aerial resources to combat wildfires. The types of aircraft used include fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. Smokejumpers and rappellers are also classified as ...

contracts with the US Forest Service. Neptune was the first- ever US operator to contract with the USFS in 2011 for a Next Gen aircraft in the form of Tanker 40, a converted

. Starting in 2013, Neptune began phasing out its

Lockheed P-2 Neptune The Lockheed P-2 Neptune (designated P2V by the United States Navy prior to September 1962) is a Maritime patrol aircraft, maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft. It was developed for the US Navy by Lockheed Corporation, Lockh ...

aircraft and now flies an all BAe 146 fleet.

Fleet

P2V aerial firefighting fleet (retired)

For more than two decades, Neptune utilized the

to perform aerial firefighting missions for the U.S. Forest Service and various State agencies. Neptune's P2V fleet performed 47,000 firefighting missions and dropped 97 million gallons of fire retardant during this period. In September 2017, Neptune retired its fleet of P2V aircraft with a celebration that included the last flight of multiple P2V aircraft at the same time. The P2V retirement proved short-lived, as

CalFire The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, colloquially known as CAL FIRE, is the fire department of the California Natural Resources Agency in the U.S. state of California. It is responsible for fire protection in various are ...

called two of Neptune's P2Vs out of retirement just seven days later to combat fires raging in California. Neptune's P2V aircraft found new homes in 2018 in museums around the country. Neptune donated P2V aircraft to the Estrella Warbirds Museum in Paso Robles, California, the T61 Memorial at

Crater Lake–Klamath Regional Airport Crater Lake–Klamath Regional Airport (Klamath Falls Airport) is a public use airport in Klamath County, Oregon, United States, five miles southeast of Klamath Falls, which owns it. It is used by general aviation, military aviation and a few a ...

Klamath Falls, Oregon Klamath Falls ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Klamath County, Oregon, United States. The city was originally called ''Linkville'' when George Nurse founded the town in 1867. It was named after the Link River, on whose falls the city ...

, Glendive Airport in

Glendive, Montana Glendive is a city in and the county seat of Dawson County, Montana, United States, and home to Dawson Community College. Glendive was established by the Northern Pacific Railway during the building of the railroad line. The town of Glendive is ...

, the

Yankee Air Museum The Michigan Flight Museum, formerly known as the Yankee Air Museum, is an aviation museum located at Willow Run Airport, and in Ypsilanti Township, Michigan. The museum has a small fleet of flying aircraft and a collection of static display air ...

Ypsilanti, Michigan Ypsilanti ( ), commonly shortened to Ypsi ( ), is a college town and city located on the Huron River in Washtenaw County, Michigan, Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's popu ...

San Diego Air & Space Museum The San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM) is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California. It is located in Balboa Park (San Diego), Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building (San Diego), Ford Building, which is li ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, California, and

Missoula Montana Airport Missoula Montana Airport is located in Missoula, Montana, Missoula, in Missoula County, Montana, Missoula County, Montana. It is owned by the Missoula County Airport Authority.. Federal Aviation Administration. Effective April 17, 2025. The Na ...

(where P2V Tanker 10 is featured at the main entrance to the airport).

BAe 146 aerial firefighting fleet

Neptune Aviation began researching the development of next-generation air tankers in 2007. Neptune's team included experts in aerial firefighting, heavy jet operations, and modifications. After three years of research into aerial firefighting requirements and future direction, Neptune Aviation selected the BAe 146 type for development in 2010. A Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) from the US Federal Aviation Administration for modifications of BAe 146 aircraft to be used for the aerial dispersant of liquids was issued in March 2010. The Interagency Airtanker Board (IAB) approved Neptune's use of the BAe 146 for agency use in 2016. As the U.S. Forest Service looked for next-generation aircraft to replace older aircraft like the P2V, Neptune Aviation led the development of the

BAe 146 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Avro International Aerospace manu ...

aircraft as an aerial firefighting platform. Neptune's BAe 146 aircraft were the first aircraft that met the Forest Service criteria to qualify as next-generation air tankers, which require the aircraft to be

turbine A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work. The work produced can be used for generating electrical ...

turbofan A turbofan or fanjet is a type of airbreathing jet engine that is widely used in aircraft engine, aircraft propulsion. The word "turbofan" is a combination of references to the preceding generation engine technology of the turbojet and the add ...

powered, be able to cruise at 300 knots (345 mph), and have a retardant capacity of at least . Neptune chose the BAe 146 as its primary aerial firefighting aircraft because of the 146's reliable slow flight characteristics, high cruising speed and outstanding maneuverability. Neptune Aviation was the first US operator to contract with the USFS in 2011 for a next-generation aircraft in the form of Tanker 40, a converted BAe 146. , Neptune had acquired and converted nine BAe 146 aircraft into aerial firefighting tankers.

Incidents and accidents

* On July 22, 2010 Tanker No. 44 a Lockheed P-2V-5 Neptune was damaged upon landing at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport after a retardant drop on a wildfire in

Rocky Mountain National Park Rocky Mountain National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located approximately northwest of Denver in north-central Colorado, within the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The park is s ...

. The aircraft overran the runway and the front landing gear collapsed. The undercarriage and gear needed substantial repair. The pilot and co-pilot were not injured in the accident.

References

External links

* {{Official website, https://neptuneaviation.com/ Aerial firefighting Privately held companies based in Montana American companies established in 1993