Due to the increased risk of forest fires, observation flights are carried out in parts of the Upper Palatinate at the weekend. The government of the Upper Palatinate announced this on Thursday. According to the German Weather Service (DWD), the forest fire danger index in Bavaria for Saturday and Sunday is between 3 (medium danger) and 5 (very high danger).
According to the information, particularly endangered areas in the Upper Palatinate will be observed from the air twice a day on a total of five flight routes. In addition to the volunteer pilots from the Oberpfalz Air Rescue Squadron, specially trained air observers from the fire department or administration are also on board the aircraft.
It was initially not known whether observation flights would also take place in other administrative districts of Bavaria. The DWD is predicting unusually high temperatures between 23 and 30 degrees in Bavaria for the weekend. The public is asked not to handle open fires or smoke in forest areas.