Indonesia needs better aircraft for water-bombing operations

In this photograph taken on September 23, 2015, a helicopter deployed for water bombing flies over burning peat land in Banjar district in southern Kalimantan province on Borneo island. The forest fires blanketing Southeast Asia in choking haze are on track to become among the worst on record, NASA has warned, with prolonged dry season hampering efforts to curb a crisis that has persisted for nearly two decades. AFP PHOTO

Indonesia said it needs aircraft capable of hauling more water and flying farther, to put out forest fires which cause the haze that has been spreading throughout the region.

The country's disaster management agency, BNPB, yesterday said it is open to assistance from neighbours Singapore and Malaysia in acquiring larger water-bombers such as the Russian-made Beriev Be-200 or the CL-245 from Canada.