Martin MARS Water Tanker

Guys, these photos are pretty amazing....They were fwd'd. to me without any accompanying text, other than to state that they were recent. Coulson was likely under contract to fight the fires in S. CA and it looks like Lake Elsinore was a convenient water pickup site.

The daring pilot of this magnificent relic apparently needed every bit of the length of the lake to effect a successful water pickup and still get off the lake. There is zero wind, too. I especially like the first photo where the pilot (God bless him!) seems to be picking a path through the salt cedar bushes.

It must be an expensive chore, keeping those Wright Duplex Cyclones clanking away!