NC Plane Fighting Fires Crashes

The Air Force did not immediately release the names of those killed and injured after a C-130 from North Carolina crashed fighting fires out west. The North Carolina Air National Guard's 145th Airlift Wing sent two aircraft equipped with the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) to Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Saturday morning to support firefighting efforts throughout the Rocky Mountain area.  MAFFS is a joint Department of Defense and U.S. Forest Service program designed to provide additional aerial firefighting resources when commercial and private air tankers are no longer able to meet the needs of the forest service.  The Charlotte-based aircraft joined C-130s from the Wyoming Air National Guard and the U.S. Air Force Reserve's which have been operating from Colorado Springs.  The cause of the crash is still under investigation and the other C-130’s have been grounded for now.  The 145^th based in Charlotte received notification of the mission on Friday and left on Saturday.  The fatal plane crash happened Sunday night.