A training center for water bomber pilots will be set up in Nîmes. The agglomeration and the Canadian company Conair, which will manage these installations, made the announcement in the Gard prefecture. This “international center of excellence for the training of water bomber pilots” will be established within the Nîmes Grande Provence Méditerranée airport.
With an initial budget of “up to 35 million euros”, it will aim to train French and European pilots. It “will be equipped with two classic flight simulators”, reproducing real conditions, as well as four immersive tactical simulators to train in aerial combat against forest fires in realistic conditions.
Increase in resources for fighting fires
Conair specializes in the operation and modernization of firefighting aircraft and leases a large fleet of water bomber aircraft. Nîmes, for its part, already hosts a Civil Security base.
Forest fires were relatively spared France during the summer of 2023. At the beginning of October, the authorities had recorded 14,558 hectares burned since the start of the year compared to 72,000 a year earlier. The region is nevertheless very vulnerable to forest fires. After the blazes of 2022, President Emmanuel Macron announced a “new strategy”, with additional resources. The fleet of specialized aircraft has increased from 38 to 47 in one year.