SE Tennessee Forest Fires - TDF, USFS, TNARNG, CHA
All of the TDF repeater outputs in Southeast Tennessee have been very active from just after sunrise to well after dark for the past week or so due to numerous forest fires on both the Cumberland Plateau and along the Appalachian mountains on both private and public properties. In addition, there is aerial detection and spotting underway by TDF Air 31 that can be heard on those repeaters as well as on TDF Air Operations 122.9250 MHz.
Division of Forestry Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference
There are currently two BAe-146 tankers which are being based out of the USFS Air Tanker Base at the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (CHA). These tankers are conducting aerial drops of fire retardant on various fires on both State and Federal lands. These tankers can be heard at times on 168.6500 MHz. USFS Flight Following and 164.1500 MHz. USFS Air to Ground. When near CHA, the tankers and other air traffic can be heard on the Approach/Departure, Tower, and Ground frequencies for the airport, 125.1000, 119.2000, 118.3000, and 121.7000 MHz, respectively. These tankers can be viewed from the road in front of the tanker base (Jubilee Drive off Brainerd Road/Lee Highway) when they are at the airport.
US Forest Service - Cherokee National Forest (TN) - The RadioReference Wiki
Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (CHA) Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference
There are also some Tennessee Army National Guard helicopters conducting water drops using Bambi buckets that they refill in Chickamauga Reservoir on various fires along Signal Mountain/Waldens Ridge in the Roberts Mill Road vicinity. However, my monitoring location is not near this vicinity so I don't know what frequencies these units are using to coordinate their fire fighting efforts. Stations located west of the Tennessee River may want to maintain a lookout for any related traffic.
It's been a long, dry fire season already with no rainfall in the foreseeable forecast. Keep these fire crews, other first responders, and their families in your thoughts and prayers as they fight these fires.