The most notable of Coulson Aviation’s firefighting fleet in Australia, the Boeing 737 Fireliner named “Marie Bashir” was originally scheduled to be named after the firstborn son of Prince Harry and Megan Markle.
The royal couple, when approached by the New South Wales government, rejected the offer of naming the newest asset to the government’s fleet “Archie” after the young royal. Stating that Archie, who will turn one year old shortly had not yet entered public life and politely declined the offer. The New South Wales government then moved forward with naming the aircraft the Marie Bashir, after the 37th Governor-General of New South Wales, who was also the longest-serving Governor-General in the state.
Bashir was an accomplished doctor, specializing in the psychiatry field, later going on to become an accomplished university lecturer and expert in her field before beginning public service in 2001 as the Governor-General of New South Wales, a post she held until 2014 as both the longest-serving, and only female Governor of New South Wales.
The Coulson Aviation B737 Fireliner was launched ahead of the worst fire season in Australian history, in August of 2019. The aircraft went on to be an integral part of fighting the devastating fires that ravaged the state of New South Wales and also saw service in other Australian states during the 2019/2020 fire season.
