A few DC-10s in use round California and Arizona too.
Being able to drop 50 tons in one go is more effective than several smaller drops.

I flew out to Durango at Memorial day weekend and there was a TFR for aerial firefighting at nearby Pagosa springs. Taking the steam train to Silverton, a fire fighting tender followed to put out the (several) fires we left in our wake, but even one of those got out of control and needed chopper support.

Many years ago, I learnt on a 1958 vintage straight tale 150.

CG wise it was virtually impossible to load it outside limits. They had a 1500lb MTOW, so you had to do your sums for 2 people and full fuel.

That said it was lighter and nicer to fly than most of the later models. Pulling on the last stage (40 deg) of flap at more than about 60 mph needed determined effort (and watch for the pitch up if you power to go around).

The Isaac’s Spitfire was apparently quite a fun machine to fly, from the people I’ve spoken to. But, despite selling many sets of plans, there’s still only one of them. This may say something about the complexity of construction.

Marcel Jurca designed a near scale replica, getting the detail design and structural analysis done by a group of students at the Sorbonne IIRC. But again the size of the task meant it was never to gain popularity.

This one stands a better chance with the higher degree of pre-fabrication and reduced build time, but it’ll still be a huge task for Paul to get the full squadron.

I wish him luck.

Well the Cri-cri came in at about 78kg and that’s a twin that can fly on one engine.
Colomban has also designed the Luciole that’s not a whole lot heavier and a practical single seater.

Interestingly, neither runway lights nor landing lights are legally required to operate at night in a private aircraft. If you didn’t have either it may be a bit challenging on a dark cloudy night :D.

30 minutes after sunset can vary between pitch dark and reasonably light, so some pilot discretion is advisable. Often dark airfields are a haven for wildlife at night such as deers, badgers, foxes etc to add to the fun.

Even without a turning engine, the battery will power the flaps down.
It would be good practice to use them even if applied at the last minute.
But it’s also easy to miss the odd checklist item in the reality of an emergency.

There was a seminar once discussing the BOAC 707 that caught fire after take off and returned immediately to land on the old 23 runway at Heathrow. Someone asked how he managed to complete the pre-landing checks so quickly. The reply from the pilot was “Gear, Flaps!”.

Concentrate on the important stuff: select the clearest area and maintain a stable speed, do the other checks if you get a chance.

I don’t know the current status of Delta Jets. I remember seeing them at Kemble not that long ago – your eyes are everywhere if you know there’s a Hunter aiming for the same runway as you.

Down the road from me they offer rides in the T-33 Shooting Star and the P-38 Lightning (not the English Electric variety but just as rare). That’s the Planes of Fame museum at Chino.

If you want to test your stomach and G-tolerance first, I’d highly recommend a trip with Ultimate High at Kemble. They’d likely also know the status of Delta Jets as I believe they have shared some crew between the two organizations (including an ex Red One).

They’re also language independent

Yes, but….

I had to learn to read them in American (vis in SM,pressure in inches, but curiously temps still in Celsius).