FOUNDED:
July 1987 by John and Connie Hirth

GENERAL:
Hirth Air Tankers, a relatively new entity and small company in the aerial firefighting field, has primarily worked on short-term contracts. Hirth Air Tankers is prepared to take on any project compatible with its size and capabilities. Hirth Air Tankers is the last commercial operator of the Lockheed PV-2 Harpoon, one of the last World War II era aircraft being used for aerial firefighting. The company is possibly the only private contractor and air tanker base operator in the U. S. using a medium twin-engine airtanker, the PV-2. Lockheed PV-2 Harpoons are forerunners of the P-2V Neptune.

COMPANY OPERATION:

• Aerial fire suppression
• Aerial spraying with large aircraft on government spraying contracts
• Private range land spraying
• Overseas spraying contracts(Hirth Air Tankers has had no spraying contracts to date, but has prior experience with other operators using the PV-2 on government contracts)
• Hirth Air Tankers owns, operates, and maintains a tanker base in Walterboro, South Carolina, under contract with Westavco Corporation

AREAS CONTRACTED:
South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wyoming

FLEET: (Types of aircraft)
Two PV-2s airtankers, two PV-2 sprayers, two PV-2s in storage or rebuild, one Grumman American G164B-600 Ag-Cat single engine airtanker.

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES:
5

CONTACT:
Connie Hirth
(307) 684-7160