Fire Boss Air Tractor 802F Equipped with Wipaire’s Amphibious Floats Flies Over Washington, DC National Mall in AOPA Flyover Event
This past Saturday, May 11, a Fire Boss—an Air Tractor 802F equipped with Wipaire’s amphibious floats—was one of 55 aircraft to participate in the National Celebration of General Aviation DC Flyover, organized by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) to celebrate their 85th anniversary. The single engine scoops water from nearby water sources for aerial firefighting. Air Tractor is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The Fire Boss was in the Public Service Flying category in the flyover.
View the event on AOPA’s YouTube channel here (watch from 58:07 until 58:32, and the commentators speak more about the Fire Boss at 59:17 until 59:50 ). Leading up to the event, AOPA also filmed a short segment on the Fire Boss here (watch from 45 seconds until 2:17). AOPA’s Tom Haines and veteran aviation journalist Miles O’Brien commented on the live video streamed event.
The National Celebration of General Aviation DC Flyover aircraft highlighted the roles and eras of general aviation aircraft since 1939 and commemorated the first proclamation of Aviation Day by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the creation of AOPA 85 years ago. Some of the additional aircraft that participated in the flyover were the Beechcraft Staggerwing, Cessnas, Pipers, Husky, Kodiak, Vans, Grumman, Pitts, Douglas DC-3, seaplanes, homebuilt aircraft, and Robinson and Enstrom helicopters. The event concluded with the Titan Aerobatic Team (formerly AeroShell) flying over the National Mall with smoke. NAAA Pilot member Steve Gustafson is a member of the Titan Aerobatic Team. View all aircraft that participated in the event here.
The flyover event began at Frederick Municipal Airport (FDK), and the aircraft followed the Potomac River to the National Mall. The aircraft flew through airspace that has been closed to anything but military and emergency aircraft since September 11, 2001, and through the ultra-secure P56 airspace, which has been sealed off for decades.
